Fubuki no Kaen
by xan-vallen
Summary: Marth, the exiled heir to the throne of Altea, and Roy, a teenage ex-general, are banished and forced into slavery by the power-hungry Gaimen. How can the two young men survive when their personalities clash?{yaoi, angst, blood, slavery} -completed-
1. Exile

"Fubuki no Kaen" 

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with eventual yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes: Vallen: The start of a long fic. Xan and I were playing Super Smash Brothers Melee one late night and said, "Hey, wouldn't that make a great fic?" or something to that extent. Hey, it was late, I don't remember. But this chapter starts out with Fate dealing Marth and Roy a bad hand of cards. 

          Xan:  Well, yeah… I guess that's about all that needs to be said. You know the characters, or else you wouldn't be reading this, would you?  We hope you enjoy!

"I do pronounce you, Prince Marth of Altea, banished from this kingdom."

          He stood tall, a mask of dignity frozen on his passive face. Dark blue strands of hair fell down, nearly to his eyes, and cut short at the nape of the young man's neck.

          "You have been cut from your rank and all ties to the royal household…" The commanding voice droned on. It was a voice he had grown to hate.  

When all was finished, two burly guards carrying large weapons grabbed him roughly. He made no move to retaliate.

The speaker, a tall, middle-aged man with short dark raven-colored hair and wearing elegant gold and black body armor smirked at him. The smirk disappeared before anyone else could see, but it lingered in his triumphant orange-ember eyes.

The man who would be king, only eighteen years old and just barely a man, felt those smoldering orange eyes burn into his back as the guards moved to escort him out.

          '_Damn you, Gaimen,' _Marth thought, suppressing a growl. '_You may have the rest of the Kingdom fooled, but you and I **both** know better.'_

The exiled Prince turned his head and gave Gaimen a look of purest ice with his intense cobalt blue eyes. Then he turned and allowed himself to be forced out.

          Gaimen felt a shiver go up his spine. That look- that look that held the freezing danger of a glacier frightened him. Banished or no, Prince Marth was still a very dangerous man.

          But- Gaimen settled back on his throne- he would no longer be a threat. With his two biggest threats now eradicated, Gaimen was free to seize the throne. 

~~~~~~~~

          Marth gave Gaimen's henchmen no problems as they took him to a small stone structure a ways from the main castle. They had taken away his sword and although he _could_ take the both of them and defeat them, he would only be caught again. Better to wait until they were farther away. 

          Once inside the small building, they stripped him of his fine armor and clothes.

          'You ain't no Prince anymore, pretty boy," one of the goons leered at him with broken yellow teeth and breath that stank of stale wine and rancid meat. He had dark hair that was short and greasy, his eyes beady and scrutinizing. He grabbed Marth's small crown off his head and dropped it on the floor.

          Marth stood, passive and defiant at once. He said nothing, but just looked at them.

          "Here, yer _majesty._ Put these on," the second cohort handed Marth a pile of clothes. This one had lighter brown hair and he too looked like he hadn't bathed in quite some time. He was just as bulky as the first and his eyes were a light brown. The ex-prince pulled the clothes on.

          He was now wearing a blue tunic with a white long-sleeved shirt underneath and blue leggings. All of them were worn and ripped in a few places. His own boots he was allowed to keep.

          "In you go, into the Royal bedroom," one of the henchmen said, shoving Marth into an iron cage. "Nighty-night." They left, laughing. 

          Marth sat, hugging his knees to his chest. A stray piece of hair fell into his face as it always did and he brushed it back. As his eyes adjusted to the gloom, he sensed another person in the room, specifically, in the cage. 

          "I heard them talking about you," a voice stated, the speaker's voice having a youthful quality to it. But the tone implied different. "Are you the Prince?"

          The shadowed figure sat in a corner, hiding any features that would be visible in daylight. He spoke with deep contempt in his voice and kept his head bowed. 

          Marth heaved a heavy sigh. That sigh was the only sign of his inward anger and turmoil.

          "It is true that I was Prince Marth," he said calmly.

          The other occupant of the cage jumped to his feet abruptly, causing the bars to rattle. He strode over to Marth and into a beam of light provided by the moon.

          A lean, fighter's body was clothed in a simple sleeveless faded-green tunic and dark grey breeches. He wore no shoes and his skin was slightly pale.

          "You bastard!" Furious blue eyes, almost the same shade as his own, glared at Marth as the teen made his way over. Wild, but somewhat short, bright auburn hair was almost tamed by a blue and faded gold-colored headband. "Do you realize what I went through because of you?!"

          Marth looked up at him from his position on the ground. That boyish face looked familiar, a sight from so many days at court. He could feel this boy's anger radiating from him like fire.

          "Whatever it was, it wasn't my fault," Marth got to his feet, the moonlight playing on his blue hair and casting a glow on his own lean, muscled body under the tunic. "As of about twenty minutes ago, I am now banished." A trace of a snarl crept up into the exiled Prince's voice and he struggled to keep it out. His nails bit into his palms.

          The auburn-haired boy looked straight up into Marth's eyes, fearless. He would not be intimidated by the ex-prince's height. 

          "Wasn't _your_ fault? What do you mean if wasn't your fault?" he shouted. "I was in the castle, practicing maneuvers with my patrol unit and they grab me, strip me of my clothes, sword, and rank out of thin air! The only explanation I got was that the cause of this was you."

          "I can _assure_ you, I didn't do anything to intentionally rob you of your rank, _General. _But as you can no doubt see, I'm just as bad off as you are," Marth looked directly back into the boy's eyes, a little surprised to see they were the exact color of his own. "If you'd stop shouting and calm down, we just might be able to work something out. What is your name?"

          The other boy's fists clenched tightly and he took another step closer till they were no more than a foot apart. His muscles tensed before he landed a punch on Marth's face. 

          "Now, why would the "Prince" be concerned with my humble name? Seeing as it's all I have left."

          Marth glared at him, blood trickling from his lip. He tossed his icy cool out the window and hit the auburn-haired boy back, his fist connecting squarely with the other's face. 

          "Shut up!" He shouted. "I'm not a Prince anymore and I had _nothing _to do with what happened to you! Can't you understand that?!" 

          The smaller boy took a staggering step back and ran his fingers lightly over his eye. His eyes concentrated on the bars surrounding them, avoiding Marth's gaze.

          "Well done," he growled softly. "Perhaps you aren't the airy, stuck-up "Prince" I thought you were." The young general turned his head and sat back in the corner, clearing away the small amount of blood from his nose. 

          The exiled prince leaned back against the bars of the cage and slid slowly to the ground. He wiped away the blood on his lip and leaned his head back. He felt the ice seep back into him. It wasn't his fault that he was this way. Losing both of his parents so recently had forced him to become cold and hardened. As for his cellmate…

          Marth studied the auburn-haired boy in the opposite corner. He could definitely do worse than be stuck with the hotheaded general. Maybe in time he would understand that the ex-royal had nothing to do with his dismissal. With that thought, Marth closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep. 

~~~~~~~~

He was awoken the next morn by none-too-gently hands probing the bruise on his cheek.

          "See Sanders? Told yeh we shoulda put 'em in separate cages," the dark-haired goon growled at his partner. "They've been feudin' and gone and ruined their pretty faces."

          "Don't worry 'bout it. Dammit, Brently, they'll heal by the time they get to The Market," the lighter partner, called Sanders, snapped back, all too busy with the boy-general.

          He struggled to bind the boy's wrists behind his back, and with great difficulty, succeeded. Half dragging and half-yanking, the goon exited the small structure. 

          The other one turned to Marth and pulled him roughly to his feet.

          "Now, are yeh gonna behave?"

          "No." Marth slipped out of he goon's grasp and bolted for the open door. Beyond the door lay his sword.

          "Hey! Git back here!" Brently shouted, lunging after him. Marth dodged and seized his sword. He sprinted out the wooden door.

          The second, Sanders, had managed to bind the young general's hands and feet and forced him to sit under a tree. Once he saw Marth loose and armed, he jumped up and headed warily over to him. Marth held his sword steady, intent on his escape. He was so intent the he forgot about Brently until in was too late. The dark-haired cohort had snuck up and tackled Marth from behind, using his bulk to bring him down. Sanders wrestled his sword from his grip and tied his wrists and ankles. They threw him to the ground next to the general.

          "There, yer _majesty_. There's a lesson for yeh," one of them said, referring to the blow he had given Marth. The prince now had multiple bruises on his face. 

          "I take back what I said earlier. You _are_ a fool," the general muttered under his breath. "You made several mistakes: One of them being the fact that you actually fell asleep last night. Secondly, never forget the number of opponents and last… I was watching you. You didn't have a chance."

          "I don't usually act so reckless," Marth admitted quietly. "Nor do I sleep often. I just opted to at least try rather than be sold to slave traders. It's been a very interesting past few days and I wasn't thinking clearly. Thank you for your expert advice, General _Roy,"_ his voice was totally un-sarcastic. 

          The auburn-haired teen looked mildly surprised, but was about to retort when they were both yanked up and slung over separate horses. Then the cohorts mounted their beasts.

          "We've both had quite enough of you and it you give us any more trouble, you'll regret it," came a deep, angry voice from atop the horse that the ex-Prince was slung over.

          Marth stayed silent. He had absolutely no intention whatsoever of giving them any further trouble. Roy on the other hand, seethed deeply, glaring down at the ground.

          "So whaddya say, Sanders?" We oughta be able to make it to Fairtown by nightfall, eh?" said the one above Roy. 

          "Yeah. And then from Fairtown it's a day and a half to the rendezvous point."

          "How fun." Brently smirked at the two boys slung over the backs of the two horses. "I hear the roads are _terrible_- lot's of jostling."

          Marth heard the boy-general next to him growl and relaxed back into his ice state. If he was ice, nothing could hurt him…  

~~~~~~~~

          Later, much later, Brently and Sanders stopped at an inn. The captives were finally allowed to slide off the horses. Roy's knees buckled under him and he fell over, face in the dirt, unbalanced by his bound wrists and ankles. The boy-general became away of the bruises that had formed on his abdomen and bit back a moan.

          The ex-Prince however, seemed unresponsive and his eyes were unreadable. He soon joined Roy on the ground.

          _'And we have to do this again tomorrow…'_ Roy thought angrily, glaring at nothing in particular.

          "Hey, how 'bout we tie 'em up in the barn with the horses? They won't cause a commotion there…" the bulkier Brently suggested to Sanders as they both dismounted.

          "Sounds good. You do that while I get rooms for us," the lighter haired man replied. He walked off. 

          Brently jerked Marth up and the blue-haired young man glared ice daggers at the goon.

          "Go ahead and glare. It won't do any good." They disappeared into the barn of the small inn for a moment before Brently came back for Roy.

          What the redhead saw in the barn was tired horses in stalls, exhausted from their day's ride, and Marth tied to a wooden pole upon a loft.

          "I'm glad yer light, Kid…" Brently muttered while hoisting Roy over his shoulder and climbing up a ladder to the loft.

          "I'm not a kid," Roy stated flatly.

          The goon rolled his eyes,

          "Yeah, right… And I'm the Queen of Altea… You can't be more than fifteen, Boy."

          Keeping his mouth shut and fiery temper in check, the general focused on the pain, ignoring the situation. Soon Roy's wrists were tied to Marth's and his ankles to the ex-prince's as well. Hearing Brently's chuckle, he squirmed a bit to try to get comfortable. No luck. 

          _'Twisted sense of humor…'_ He found the pain too dull and turned his thoughts to the man whose back was pressed against his unwillingly.  

          Those eyes were cold and unfeeling and Roy realized that the ex-prince had not said a word all day since the attempted escape. A lock of stray blue hair fell into his eyes and he did not bother to move his head. For once, Roy was glad that he wore a headband to keep his own unruly mop. 

          "Are you going to sleep tonight as well?" the former general paused, eyes narrowing slightly, "I can stay up again."

          Roy cursed himself mentally. It sounded like he was offering to give up his own hours of sleep for Marth's. That did _not_ come out the way he wanted it to- seeing things as they were now, he didn't want to sacrifice anything for the former prince.

          Marth stirred for the first time that entire day, lifting his head up and tossing the hair out of his eyes. 

          "I will stay awake and watch if you wish to sleep," he said.

          Roy gave him an even look,

          "I do not 'wish' to be caught unaware, Highness."

          "I'm not a Prince, there's no reason to call me that. And have no fear, I have no intention of falling asleep tonight anyways. There's no point in neither of us sleeping anyways," He said expressionlessly.

          "I don't believe you're forgotten your previous position in your heart." Roy shifted against him uncomfortably, his eyes darkening and eyelids half-closing tiredly. "For once, you're right. Training didn't prepare me for something like _this…_"

          "Sleep," Marth said. He settled back and thought about the boy-general's words: "_I don't think you've forgotten your previous position in your heart…"_ The ex-prince shifted a bit. Eighteen years of being royalty didn't just vanish overnight and there wasn't a thing he could do about it. With a sigh, he sat back for a long night of watching.

TBC…

Vallen: Whew! There's the first chapter! I really hope you enjoyed it, and if you did, there's a hell of a lot more to come! Tell us what you think! 

Xan: Yes, a lot a lot more…  Expect torture and angst and blood and all that really fun pretty stuff that you know you love later on…  C'mon, you know you love it…  Please review! 


	2. Enslaved

"Fubuki no Kaen"

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes: Xan: Well, here we are again, with a brand new chapter this time... This is where it all gets "interesting," folks, so be warned!!

Vallen: *cough* *cough* She's right… Just bear with our sadistic muses and read…  
  


Thanks to: Li Kayun: (Thank you! Plot hasn't always been our strong point, as Vallen can tell you... *sweatdrop*) turquoisefox: (here it is we hope you enjoy it!) RcA: (Hee hee hee... you'll get plenty of "nice" stuff later on. just wait for the next chapter... *manical laughter*) Super Beast: (Very good on the title translations! However, we're not going to tell you which is the right one. We like to keep you guessing) Unproductivity: (Arigato! We like Marth/Roy too, obviously...) Voo: (Don't forget, dear, that you've read about 50-60 pages more than anybody else! Be thankful!) Mako Tsunami: (Thank you! Beginnings usually aren't our strong point either...) Krile: (yay!! Even non-yaoi fans like it! We've really accomplished something!! And thank you, we pride ourselves on staying true to the facts!) Nekoi=^^=: (*turns neko* mew! I'm really glad you do! Keep reading!) Fubuki no Kaen fan #1: (*blink* WOW. You certainly know how to make people feel loved don't you? We really appreciated that one, and yes, suggest it to whoever you want. Oh, and we don't post chapters based on how many reviews we get… We just post them as soon as we can get them out.)

True to his word, Marth was still awake when the first rays of sunlight began to stream through the chinks of the walls of the barn. The exiled prince heard Sanders and Brently's voices coming closer.

"Hey," he elbowed Roy in the back. "They're coming." The auburn-haired teen stirred and was awake immediately. He shifted his eyes just in time to see the two henchmen coming up to the loft.

"Hey, look, the little bastards musta been waitin' for us... Heh. Didn't want to be surprised again, eh?" Brently sneered, untying them apart from each other. 

"Guess not," Sanders said. He leered at Marth.

"Gonna try anything this morning, Prince Pretty-boy?"

"I wasn't planning on it, esteemed guard," Marth answered quietly.

Sanders looked surprised.

"Well, my god. His Highness has said an entire sentence. Its a miracle." 

He jerked Marth to his feet. "Now git over there and no funny business."

Once both prisoners were slung over the horses back and the captors were mounted, Sanders turned to Brently.

"How much longer is it till we get there?"

"We'll get there by nightfall for the evening auction at the pace we're going," he replied, urging the fresh horse into a fast canter. "Let's go."

The foursome reached the end of their journey just as the sun was beginning to set. Roy lifted his head wearily when he heard the laughter, screams, and other sounds he did not want to register. The slave market was indeed a scary place. Cages filled with scared, wide-eyed people who were yet to be bought and the buyers stood around the bars, looking at the "stock" greedily. There was a large, filthy stage where only one thing could happen: People were bought and sold.

"I heard you were coming from the grapevine, but I didn't believe the rumors!" A voice cried out, distinctly male.

A man ran up to them. He had greasy black hair, about shoulder-length, and small black eyes. The slave-trader wore a deep red jacket with muddy-brown breeches. Those eyes too shone with greed.

"I guess this time the rumors are true," Brently said, dismounting. "'Cause we're here and have two beauties which your buyers will go crazy over."

"Oooh! Lemme see!" He looked like a child, eagerly awaiting a new toy.

Brently shook his head and lifted the limp Roy off his horse.

"This one's young and has got a temper fit to beat hell. But I hear many go for the fiery, resistant type." 

With that, he shrugged and gestured to Sanders. With a grunt, the burly man pulled Marth off the horse. The ex-monarch landed on his feet and swayed unsteadily for a moment before standing.

"This one's a little older. He's real quiet and don't say much, but ya gotta watch him every minute or he'll try to pull a fast one."

"Good, good, good!" The fast-talking man named Allen cried. He grasped both of their chins to pull their heads up and get a closer look at their faces… Fire and Ice.

"Just give us the money and we'll go," Brently _hinted_ with a rough edge to his voice.

Allen looked up at the sky and fumbled inside his jacket for several pure gold coins.

"Here… Are you sure you don't want to stay for the Evening Auction? I save the best one's for last."

Brently shook his head.

"No, we've got to get back to General Gaimen as quickly as we can," he said. "But I'm _sure_ it'll be a lot of fun."

Sanders nodded in agreement and took the money from Allen's hand. The mounted their horses once again and left as quickly as they had came.

"_General_ Gaimen…" Roy growled angrily, speaking at last. "They're supposed to be answering to me."

Marth's cobalt eyes flickered over to him. Actually, everybody should be answering to _him_… Not that he liked groveling…

Allen turned to them and produced yet another item from his jacket: A dagger. He used it to cut away the soon-to-be-slave's tunics. He didn't want to bother with untying their bindings. 

"We sell 'em with minimal clothing… What the hell?!" The slave-trader caught sight of the deep bruising on both of their stomachs. "You're damaged…" He looked angry, "Those bastards. I can't sell damaged goods, think of my reputation…"

Marth looked at him. What kind of reputation could a filthy slave-trader possibly have?

"Oh well. Yer pretty faces will make up for that…" Allen bent down and stood up, an object appearing in his hands- A whip.

Roy and Marth's eyes followed the whip as Allen uncoiled it slowly. He noticed their eyes and smiled.

"This is a special whip," he told them. "It'll still hurt as much as a regular one, but the end it soft so it won't mar your pretty skin."

Marth looked at the man, the tiniest bit of apprehension rising in his throat. Roy's expression was incredulous.

"Good to see you have the right idea," Allen said. "Now start walking. I'm going to put you in cages until the selling tonight." He cracked his whip to give his words emphasis. The three of them walked to a building with many cages inside, although they were still close to each other. Allen left, presumably to attend to other business.

The ex-prince sat in a corner of his cage, knees hugged to his bare chest, protecting his bruised and still-sore stomach. Roy, on the other hand, laid sprawled out, staring at the ceiling.

"I'm a soldier… I don't want to be sold," he said angrily to no one in particular. He glanced over at his former monarch, but just for a moment. '_Gods… How can he just sit there like that?'_

_'So this is life,'_ Marth thought. '_A prince one day, a slave-to-be the next.'_ He rested his forehead on his knees and let out a heavy sigh. 

"Hey cutie, what's wrong?" A voice leered from a position next to Marth.

The man in the cage beside the ex-prince's was smirking at him. He had stringy brown hair, stubble, and a jagged scar over one eye. Marth stared at him coldly, feeling the ice slide over him protectively.

"Hey, lookit this one over here," said a female voice over by Roy. A hand slithered through the bars over to the boy-general…

Roy jerked away and clambered over to the other side of the cage, away from the questing hand.

"Don't touch me!" he shouted, half-demanding and commanding.

A bunch of voices laughed then.

"Don't like to be touched, eh?" one snickered. "Better hope you don't get sold to a Master who wants you just for yer pretty face and body. Although that's not likely."

The auburn-haired teen's face flushed, but it probably couldn't be see in the dark holding area. He pressed himself to the bars as far away from the taunting voices as he could get. Gripping the iron poles, he stole a glance at Marth,

'_Good. He's not watching…'_ he thought with a shake of his head. '_I'm just being weak.'_

"Hmmm… I wonder if this one's as skittish as the other," hissed a voice. A bony, dirty hand with blackened broken nails reached out and caressed Marth's bare skin.

The exiled Prince made a sound like a cross between a yelp and a snarl and sprang to the middle of the cage. He looked around frantically, anger radiating from him.

"Whoa," the same voice said. "His skin is like ice."

All of the sudden a door opened, sending moonlight flooding into the dim room. Two large black-skinned men walked in, picked a cage and drug the person inside out. This happened several times, until Marth and Roy were the only ones left.

The mysterious door opened once again and the pair of muscular men unlocked Marth's cage. He struggled against them, but didn't bother showing any expression as they forced him out. First, the auction servants had quite a hard time putting the ex-prince's ankles into iron shackles, as he was intent on giving them a hard time. If he was going to be sold, it was not willingly. But they pushed him to the floor and held his ankles down, clamping the iron around them. As he moved his feet and they moved away, he saw that short chains were connected to them. The chains were, in turn, melded to the floor of the stage.

Beyond the stage was a sea of people, some dirty looking and some not so at all. Allen stood at the podium, smoothing back his already greasy hair.

"Here, ladies and gentlemen, is one of the true jewels of tonight's sale. The other one which is still in the back, is just as pretty as this one."

The audience stirred appreciatively. Allen grinned to himself,

"Behold this one!" He gestured at Marth. "Beautiful blue hair, blue eyes, wonderful body. Perfect for light manual labor or… _other_ pursuits. Perfectly obedient and quiet, only vice- the bruising on his stomach, nothing that won't heal."

Marth stared passively at the audience members. Their greedy eyes roved over his body, their expressions caressing him. Marth bit his tongue. Never had he felt so raw and exposed.

"Shall we start at twenty gold pieces?" Allen asked, coaxing the mob. "Do I hear twenty?"

"Twenty!"

"I'll give twenty-five!"

"Thirty-five!"

"Forty!"

There was a long pause.

"Forty gold pieces?" Allen raised a brow. "All you people are going to let this jewel slip through your hands for only forty gold pieces? Come now, I know your purses aren't drawn that tightly."

"I shall give sixty pieces for him." A clear voice in the crowd rang out. Every eye in the mob turned.

The speaker was a young man dressed richly in wine red, gold, and sapphire blue. A rather beautiful face was framed with wavy long black hair. 

"Ah Master Trave, I should have know that you'd have your eye on this one," the greasy slave-trader said. "Do I hear another bid?"

Nobody else said anything.

"Sold to Lord Trave for sixty gold pieces. Take him out to Trave's caravan," Allen ordered the large men.

Marth gave one last look to his buyer before he was forced back into his cage and carried out. Trave smirked at him and sat back in his seat.

The audience grew noisy again in anticipation, waiting for the last item of the auction. 

He was brought out, struggling wildly. His blue eyes were bright and narrowed in anger. Strong hands clamped around his ankles, but before they could secure the shackles, he dropped down and skillfully swept his legs under their feet. The men were knocked down.

Allen stepped off the podium immediately, lashing his whip. His eyes burned as he struck the auburn-haired teen across the chest.

Roy gasped in pain and fell down to the floor of the stage. He looked down: There were no welts, just agonizing pain. He felt himself being dragged back and the cold iron fixed around his ankles.

'_No…_' he thought in horror. The boy-general began to feel what Marth had felt moments before: The eyes, their faces, and mouths whispering, forming a loud buzz.

"Stand up, Boy," Allen commanded in a low whisper. "Stand up or I'll take another lash at you."

Roy gritted his teeth and forced his body to move. After a moment, he stood once again, trembling slightly with effort to keep his composure.

"Well, now that _that's _over…" Allen announced, earning the sound of laughter from the prospective buyers.

"This one here, as you can see, has a fiery temper and the skill to pull off any kind of stunt. Blue eyes, wild auburn hair, and bit young, but that's never stopped any of you before…" the slave-trader announced in a loud voice, grinning slightly.

The crowd stirred, obviously pleased once again. The ones who still had money left wore devious gleams in their eyes while the poorer watched enviously.

"Who wants to try their hand at breaking him? I'm sure you've noticed the same bruising, but I assure you, its nothing that won't heal. I'll start at eighteen gold pieces…"

"Twenty!"

"Twenty-eight!"

"Thirty!"

A rather nasty-looking man stood and held up a hand,

"Forty-five," he proclaimed, thinking that, at the end of the auction, no one had the money left to spend more than that.

"Fifty-five gold pieces." It was Trave. The handsome man spoke calmly, knowing that no one could top that. His eyes shone with something like malice and pride.

"Are you mocking me, Trave?" the dirty man shouted at him.

Trave was eerily calm.

"Not at all."

Allen looked particularly please. He didn't notice Roy sink to the floor in shock. He was sold. The greasy trader snapped his fingers,

"Fifty-five pieces it is, Master Trave. Have fun." He turned to the pair of men, "This one goes to Lord Trave's caravan as well." They did as they were told, carrying a wide-eyed Roy.

The wavy-haired man, after paying, soon went to an area with many fine horses and one common carriage. Servants were hooking several of the horses up to a barred wagon, filled with slaves. Many of them sat, defeated, and others stood, catching glimpses of what they wouldn't see for a long time. But they all had one thing in common: One way or the other, they all had pretty faces.

Roy vaguely felt himself be placed upon a horse, his wrists tied to the pommel of the saddle and his feet tied to the stirrups. He couldn't move. The teen lifted his head and saw a familiar person on a horse directly in front of him.

Allen bade farewell to his biggest customer, handing him a long package.

"These are the items that came with those two pretty ones. The men that gave them to me had stripped them of all their valuables. There are two fine swords, a small crown, two sets of body armor, and a sum of money. I wish you well on your journey home," he said and turned back to his place of business.

Trave handed the package to one of his many minions to be put in his carriage. He walked over to where Marth and Roy were strapped to their horses. He approached Marth first and ran a hand slowly up the blue-haired man's leg.

"So what's your name, huh?" He purred. 

Marth stiffened under this strange man's touch. He stared straight ahead, willing himself not to look at the man who was _not_ his master. 

Trave chuckled. His hand migrated up Marth's body, his fingers just barely sliding over his bare skin. The slave-owner's fingers grasped Marth's chin tightly, sharp nails digging into the tender flesh and forcing the young man to look at him.

"If you don't answer me, that means I'll have to punish you," Trave's amethyst eyes sparkled and his soft-lipped mouth was twisted into a sadistic smile. "And I really don't like hurting you more than I have to… Most of the time."

The ex-prince felt fear wash over him, breaking though his shield of ice. Inside, he wanted to fight that touch, to run away as far as he could. But he could not.

"My name is Marth." He said

Trave raised an elegant black brow.

"Marth? That is the name of the exiled Prince. Perhaps you are he, hm?"

Marth's blood boiled inwardly and his cobalt eyes slit with hate. Trave's nails dug even deeper into Marth's skin, drawing blood.

"You will address me as Master. Now tell me, what is the other one's name?"

"His name is Roy, Master." Marth fought hard not to growl the name. Trave released him,

"Good boy." He walked over to Roy.

"I would not have given you my name so easily," the teen said quietly, lowering his gaze. "But now I guess it can't be helped."

His fingers tightened around his bonds angrily and he forced his weary and hungry body to sit up. The proud general inside himself would not let him act weak.

"Such a fiery temper, quite the opposite of your icy companion," Trave remarked, looking at his struggles with amusement. "But tell me… Are you two… _together?_" 

Roy's anger flared once again. The emotion flowed inside him, burning hot, and he glared at Trave. 

"No! What the _hell_ made you think that?!" the teen shouted incredulously, wanting nothing more than to break free and kill the slave owner.

Trave shrugged. "Allen told me that the two of you had arrived together. I was merely curious."

Up ahead, Marth wondered what Trave could have asked to set Roy off like that. He made a silent apology to the ex-general.

'_Forgive me,' _he thought. '_I didn't mean to be weak.'_

The slave-owner smirked and stepped away from them.

"I hope you two have a comfortable journey. We'll reach my estate soon." He walked off. Marth stared after him, fury kindling within him and threatening to explode. Blood dripped down from his face and onto the ropes that bound his wrists to the saddle. The barred wagon started rolling forward and their horses, which were tied to it, began walking. 
    
    TBC…

Author's Note: Xan: *grins* Well, that's it for this chapter. I hope you liked it, 'cause the next part only gets better!! Please review!! 

                   Vallen: The end! This chapter was reeeeaaally long and I apologize for it taking so long. Gomen!


	3. Behind Fubuki no Kaen

Behind Fubuki no Kaen  
  
As Told By Vallen  
  
Once upon a time, two hyper teenagers (namely Xan and Vallen) were in their "hideout" in Port Aransas, Texas, playing a certain game called Super Smash Brothers Melee at 2 AM. Little did Xan know, but as soon as she had seen Marth and Roy, the intricate wheels of "yaoi thought" began turning. She couldn't wait to spill her evil thoughts, so soon those two crazy writers were collaborating on a story like none other and completely unlike any of the others they had done before. Thus, MarthRoy (Fubuki no Kaen) was born.  
  
I realize that there were many questions concerning our story from the start, so here I am going to attempt to answer a few and shed the light on a few topics.  
  
First, the characters… Marth and Roy are not ours (*sniff*) but we took the characters and wrote them the way we think their personalities should be. They are based (look-wise) on the actual Fire Emblem RPG game or anime series characters and we hope you like the way we write them.  
  
Gaimen, the first "evil" character introduced, is purely fictional and original. His name, however, is a tag name, probably thought of in the early hours of the morning… If you've played Super Smash Brothers Melee, you'd know Mr. Game-and-Watch, the epitome of evil, or at least that's what Xan and I think of him. WE simply squished and shortened that name all together to transform "Game-and-Watch" to "Gaimen". Pretty cool, huh? *burns Mr. Game-and-Watch to a crisp*  
  
Trave is like Gaimen, completely original, but I have actually no idea if she meant to make his name sound like Treize from Gundam Wing… He kinda reminds me of Treize anyways, with the self-assured power and elegance… I'll have to ask her on that one. Oh, and if you're still confused as to why he's so bad, just wait and see…  
  
*nervous laugh* Now I realize that you guys were completely confused by the Japanese title, and I/we apologize! Our common name for the fic is MarthRoy (one word) and we kinda panicked where we had to think of a fancy title for the real thing… Just grin and bear with us… Please?  
  
Heheh… Now onto the secrets. I saw that one of you asked which character were preferred and I'm going to address that now. It started when we were playing SSBM (again) and Xan just started having a thing for Marth and I started having a think for Roy. That's how it went, and we began the fic with Xan writing for Marth and me writing for Roy. Now don't get me wrong, I love both of them dearly, but I just have an affinity for my Roy- chan…  
  
Now, what else is there to tell? I'm sure you, as our readers, will be happy to know that we have no intention of stopping this fic anytime soon. You must realize that this was originally in notebook form and had to be typed from that. In the MarthRoy notebook we're almost to page 100, but you've only read 28… So be happy! You have a whole adventure to read ahead!  
  
About the yaoi thing: I realize that some people aren't okay with that sort of stuff, but we are. I'm THE rabid yaoi fangirl and I'm working on Xan at the moment… She already like yaoi, but I must make her a fangirl! I will convert as many as I can! I actually write Gundam Wing fanfiction here on FF.net, mainly yaoi, but Xan hasn't found her niche… Yet! *thinks* Now where was I…? Ah, yes, on the yaoi topic. Eventually Marth and Roy will get together, as surprising as that may seen, but I don't think I'm/We're up to writing lemons or anything too graphic for this story. Just to clear that bit up…  
  
Well, that's it for my rant, and I hope I gave you guys some helpful information for our dear readers. Feel free to ask questions about anything, as long as it's not about spoilers! WE don't want to spoil it for you and I doubt you do either!  
  
Oh, and just one more question: Who's your favorite, Marth of Roy?  
  
-Vallen  
  
*waves pom-poms and cheers for Roy* 


	4. Trave

"Fubuki no Kaen" 

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes: Vallen: WOW! We absolutely LOVED your feedback and enthusiasm! I only hope we can please you by putting out more chapters soon… 

          Xan: Yes! Many many thanks for all your wonderful comments!! They're so very encouraging!! Hope you like this one as much as much as the others, it only gets better from here...

Thanks to: RcA: (Nope, we have't forgotten about it! And we try to be good about the chapters) Li Kayun: (wow! Thanks for the major compliment! We're glad people like Marth & Roy as much as us!) Evui: (Hopefully, Vallen's explanation answered any major questions you had. And yes, they ARE beautiful!) Asudem: (The best story you've ever read? Wow, what an ego boost. They are a great pairing, aren't they?) Xtreme Chick: (Hey, it's great that you love Roy, but what about Marth?!) Sneasel: (*blinks* Roy Brigade? Oh boy. Nice guess on the title translation, but we're still not telling. Kudos to a fellow Game & Watch hater!) Hyperactive Hippie: (We're posting! Are you happy now?) Evil Anime Chick: (Thanks for your comments!) V-Amy: (At last! A Marth fan! Go us!) BlueMage15: (Marth & Roy clones? Sounds like fun! Keep reading, it only gets better!)

By the time the small caravan had stopped, Roy had given up trying to stay awake and slumped over in the saddle. Marth was dozing lightly, eyes closed but ears alert for sounds. They had slowed to a halt in front of a large iron gate with armed guards standing menacingly in front of it. The caravan had traveled into the night and it was now morning, the sun barely peeking out from under the hills and forest.

The gates opened slowly and closed again once they were through. The estate before them was enormous, a grand mansion with many levels and elegant architecture. 

Marth heard Trave's voice, probably speaking to one of his servants,

"You know what to do with the new ones… But put the two pretty ones in the enclosed chambers and get them ready."

"Yes, Sir…" A softer voice answered.

A loud creak and several shouts told him that they were getting to other slaves out and putting them somewhere. Cold hands with a sharp dagger cut through the ex-prince's bonds.

"Please come quietly. If you try to escape, they'll just catch you again…" A tawny-brown haired young man begged in the soft voice of his. The prince looked at him coldly, but made no move after he dismounted. Fatigue crawled around every corner, threatening to grasp him.

Roy was no different. He swayed on his feet, head bowed.

They were lead into the estate and up a large flight of black marble stairs. Neither had the time to notice to grandeur of the place before they were ushered into a large room. A large bed was positioned in the middle, several couches, foreign carpets and no windows at all. 

The man tossed Marth and Roy each a bundle and turned to leave.

"Master says that you are to bathe yourselves and put on the things I have just given you," he explained then left. The door was locked behind him

The ex-general looked around a saw an entryway leading to a bathroom. There was a very large porcelain tub with hot water already in it, a light steam rising. 

"I'll take a bath… But not for him." He turned to walk towards the bathtub and noticed that Marth did not move. "Are you the modest type?" Roy asked in a glaring tone.

"It doesn't matter to me wither way," the exiled prince said. "If you'd rather me not watch, that's fine." He shrugged, "I don't care if you see me or not."

Roy snorted lightly,

"Since when have soldiers had modesty…? Fine, I'll tell you when I'm done then. It shouldn't be long." With that, he disappeared off into the washroom. 

No more than five minutes passed before the boy-general came back, wearing a towel loosely around his slim waist and small rivulets of water dripping down the side of his face. He jerked a thumb in the direction of whence he had came, indicating it was Marth's turn. Once the ex-prince was gone, he knelt on the carpet and began to unwrap the bundle. The first item he found was a pair of fine black linen pants with gold trim. He dropped the towel and pulled them on, slightly in distaste because of the knowledge of whom they were from.

Next, he heard a clank and several jingle of metal. Pulling them out slowly, he grasped what looked to be found shackles. Forcing himself not to growl, he fixed them on his already raw ankles and wrists. Frowning, the ex-general noticed that they gold bands did not hurt at all, for they were inlaid with silk, the insides caressing his skin.

The last article he picked up was a gold collar, jeweled with tiny rubies. Roy's hands shook as he examined it, eyes darkening. He hurled it across the room with a yell.

_'No! I will not put on a collar!'_ the teen shouted in his mind. '_No…'_

Roy walked over to an elegant mirror, hands still shaking slightly. Before him stood someone he didn't know. This person looked softer and younger, bright auburn hair still dripping water droplets down his bare chest. That area, along with his abdomen, still stung from the whip and the bruises had begun to turn yellow. He noticed that his face had been left untouched, for the bastard Trave to look at.

The young teen looked around frantically for a hard object and, when he found one, threw it at the mirror and his image. It shattered into hundreds of pieces. 

"That's not me," he stated loudly, to try and assure himself. When he turned away from the shards, he saw Marth there.

The prince's face, usually so cold and expressionless, was now a mask of mingled fury and fear. His cobalt blue eyes were narrowed and his tense stance radiated both the desire to flee and fight. 

Marth looked different as well. Beneath his anger he looked vulnerable and nearly fragile with his elegant beauty. The shackles and collar (adorned with sapphires, Roy noticed) fell from his hands and he kicked them as far away from himself as he could. They hit the wall and fell to the floor with a _bam_ and a clatter. 

"He thinks we're his pets…" Roy spat vehemently. "I think not."

"So I see you are not pleased with my generous gifts."

The voice that could belong to nobody else besides Trave flowed through the air and burned their ears like acid. The former general and prince turned and saw the slave-owner himself smirking in the doorway.

Dressed in immaculate aquamarine and black, he looked at them if there were two fools brought in for his entertainment, which, they reminded themselves, they _were._ Now, he mock-pouted.

"But they are not ready yet," he said to the four hulking men who had appeared silently behind him. "Put on their shackles and collars and bring them to my chambers, _bound_." He turned and left.

Fear made Marth's throat constrict tightly. The way Trave had said _bound_ made his skin crawl.

The four men started for them, picking up the shackles and collars up from off the floor as they came. Both of them struggled wildly, trying to save themselves from this indignity. Marth was nearly frantic by now, trying desperately to escape, even if it meant getting injured.

"No!" He shouted. "I won't be chained! Not again!"

Roy glanced over at Marth, frowning slightly. Why was the usually icy prince acting like a frightened child? Couldn't he see that there was no use now?

But it was all to no avail. In the end, despite their struggles, the shackles were clasped around their wrists and ankles and the collars fitted around their throats. The guards marched them out of the washroom and though several twisting corridors until they came to a set of huge doors made of black wood. They swung open and Marth and Roy were pushed rudely inside.

Trave's chambers were vast and richly decorated. In fact, nothing would have looked out of place in Marth's castle. But the two of them took little notice of this as they were forced towards once part of the room

A large area of the room was bare except for a several loops in the wall attached to which were many long, golden chains. As the guards attached the chain to loops on their collars, it was obvious that it had been built solely for this purpose. 

Once the restraints were secure, the guards stood at attention, awaiting further orders.

"I have no use for you. You may leave," Trave's voice said lazily. 

The men bowed and left.

The sadistic bastard himself was sitting at the foot of a very large bed positioned directly across from where Marth and Roy were chained. He smirked at them and tossed his long, wavy black hair.

"I'm so happy now that you're clean," he said approvingly. "And I've got you _right_ where I want you."

Roy stayed silent. This man was just too dangerous to lose one's temper at. So he fumed inwardly, struggling not to let his fury show too much.

Marth, on the other hand, was plainly terrified. He was trembling slightly and he acted like the shackles and collar burned his skin. His blue hair fell into his face, hiding fearful narrowed eyes and a pale face.

Trave smiled at their expressions. He had seen it all before, but each time it never failed to excite him. He reached for a long box at his side, the box that held all of their belongings. 

"I like to know a little bit about all my slaves," he told them as he opened it. "Let's find out about you, shall we?" 

The two of them watched silently as he removed all of their things, one by one.

"My, my, what have we here?" He asked when he pulled out their swords. His eyes lingered especially long on Falcion, the ex-prince's blade. Marth's fingers itched. If only he could get his hands on his sword….

"Armor of a high-ranking officer," Trave murmured of Roy's body armor.

But the item that fascinated the slave-owner the most was Marth's small crown.

"Well now, which one of you owned _this_, I wonder?" Trave asked, holding it up for them to see. Neither of them answered. 

Trave set the crown down on the bed and stood up. He walked over to them, keeping maddeningly just beyond their reach. He stopped in front of Marth and smiled.

"Beauty such as yours should not be kept hidden," Trave said, reaching up to brush Marth's hair out of his face. The ex-prince shuddered and took an abrupt step back. Trave smiled and dropped his hand.

"If you don't keep it out of your face, quiet one, I'm afraid I'll have to get it cut off. And that would be such a pity," He said.

Marth glared at him, but did not move, still very much afraid.

Trave shrugged and walked over to Roy. He stood over the young general, smirking.

"I am going to ask you a question and you are going to answer, because I desire to know: Before you became slaves, what were your names and your ranks?"

Roy looked at him calmly.

"I told you earlier that I would not tell you. Why are you pursuing it further?"

"I'm giving you one last chance to tell me willingly before I get angry about it." Trave answered.

One could tell that something was going on in the teen's head from the way his eyes looked downward and darkened. 

"… I was called Roy, High General of Altea," he stated flatly. 

Trave raised an eyebrow, face questioning.

"So that was your body armor. How did you acquire the title mean for men thrice your age? You cannot be more than fourteen…"

"Fifteen five moons ago," Roy corrected with a growl.

"Ah, what's a year…? Well, go on. I desire to know more," Trave prompted.

"Orphaned at age three after a great fire that burned my village to the ground and was left for dead. The Chief Lieutenant Brock took pity and trained me ever since then. I earned to title by defeating the former general Gaimen in combat and proving my skills to be superior to him."

The smooth slave-owner looked particularly please and stepped forward, taking Roy's face in his hands. The ex-general did not move.

"You never cease to amuse me… Imagine that, a child beating Gaimen… How amusing indeed…" Trave chuckled, stroking the teen's soft cheek.

Roy's eyes narrowed and he jerked away,

"I've told you what you want, so get your hands off me." 

"Feh. I'll dome back for you later." He turned to Marth again, "Now, from what I've put together, your companion here is of common birth, unlike you. Prince Marth, was it?"

Marth raised his head. His blue hair fell into his face, but he made no effort to brush it back. Trave could tell that he had recovered most of his control.

"If you know who I was, then you know that the title no longer applies to me," he said. "As I am in exile."

"So the rumors are true then," Trave murmured to himself. "The beautiful Prince Marth, heir to the throne of Altea banished on account of treason. Tell me, my slave of ice, what did you do?"

The young man's eyes blazed and he tried to take a step towards Trave, but the collar around his neck held him back.

"I did _nothing_!" He snarled, clenching his fists. "Nothing."

Trave smiled at him.

"Ah, at least my words break though your shell, little princeling," the slave-owner purred. "You will tell me eventually- I always get what I want. I see that you're frightened of the chains- perhaps you have been chained before?"

Marth became quiet and stared angrily at the floor. Trave walked back over to his bed and sat down.

"I think I am through with you for the day," Trave said. '"You two amuse me greatly. There will be much time later to continue our… Pursuits. Guards!"

The fours large guards came back immediately and planted themselves before him.

"My lord?" Asked the leader.

"Take these two to their room and I want them treated _nicely_. Don't hurt them, understand?"

The leader nodded. "Yes master."

They unhooked Marth and Roy from the chains and pushed them towards the door.

TBC….

Vallen: whew… Well, what did you think of this one? Xan and I kind of let our fetishes run away with us there… But we hoped you liked it. ^_^

Xan: Bwahahahaha!! Trave's so fun... Anyways, that's just the tip of the iceberg, kiddies! Prepare for lots more fun in the next chapter! ~_^


	5. Pride

"Fubuki no Kaen" 

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes: Vallen: Yay! Another chapter! *sweatdrop* Sorry for making you wait…

          Xan: Hey, here we are with another chapter...  At long last... *nervous cough* Sorry it took so long, but hopefully it was worth it!  This is a good one for all you Trave fans out there!  Enjoy!  

Thanks (SO MUCH) to: LilFilipinoGurl (A cookie? Me and Xan love cookies! And yes, we _try_ to make chapters long…), BlueMage15, Partner of Cyan (Too short? Oh well, I guess we can't please everybody… *frown* I don't know of a Marth basher, but he/she better stay away from Xan's Marth!), Shadow Princess (heheh… so you're liking the description _almost_ as much as we like writing it!), V-Amy (Ahem… They can't escape because… They can't! Marth realizes that in this chapter. They're imprisoned in a fortress-mansion here!), Sneasel (Love your reviews! You're one of the three people that actually _like_ Trave! That's me, you, and Xan…), LiL PriNCeSs Me (hehe… We're so glad you're hooked on our little ficcie! Oh, and there's TWO of us, not just one writer behind this!), RcA (Oh, complaining b/c of the lack of action? We're sorry! We promise things will speed up, but we like torturing them too much and leaving them helpless to our own devices…), Evil Anime Chick (We like shackles and chains too! *ponders* Oh, don't worry they'll both get tortured, only Roy is a bit stronger in the pride area…), Li Kayun (*laughs nervously* Relationship? What relationship? Oh, they'll become friends eventually, they just have to go through some trauma first! Then the fun starts…), Asudem (We love to make people happy! Just as your reviews make us happy!), Person-y (You shall have more, don't worry!), turquoisefox (I guess we know that its good, but if we did, we'd be really self-centered, wouldn't we? That's why we like having people tell us what we're doing wrong or right and what the readers like about it! Oh, and about your fic, I read it!), and Mirrormere (Dead pleased? *grin* We liiiike that… Oh, and you made Xan happy by saying that you liked Marth better… Just to tell you… ^_~).

They were marched down several long halls before stopping at one door in particular. One of the guards inserted a key into the lock and opened it. Marth and Roy were shoved roughly inside.

In the dim lighting of the room, the two young men could make out a fairly large bed and several other pieces of furniture. Another guard went around and lit candles, providing light and revealing the medium-sized room further.

A particularly well-built guard took charge over Marth and Roy themselves. He practically threw the lighter Roy and shoved Marth roughly onto the bed. Chains welded to the headboard were once again hooked to the loops on their collars. 

The men left without giving any explanation and locked the door securely behind them.

Roy gave the ex-Prince a sour look and moved to the far side of the bed, as far as the chain would allow him. "This is all your fault…" he growled, hugging a large pillow fiercely and not bothering to crawl under the blankets.  
  


"My fault?" Marth repeated softly, running his hands through his dark blue hair and producing a hairpin. He inserted it into the lock that chained him to the bed and after a few minutes of fiddling with it, there was a faint click and the chain fell from his collar. Marth turned and gave Roy a quizzical look, raising one brow. 

"I fail to see how something that is totally and completely out of both of our control is now suddenly my fault." He stood up and stretched, keeping one eye on Roy. "Would you like me to help you out too?"

The ex-general eyed Marth warily, trying to figure out why his former Prince would want to help him. Instead of being stubborn and refusing help, Roy moved closer to Marth. He turned his head and tilted his neck to give Marth better access. 

"Yes," he gritted his teeth. "Please…"

Marth took the pin and put it in the lock. After a few moments of skillful lock picking, it was done and Roy was free as well. Marth flopped onto one of the chairs and tucked the pin back into his hair. 

"You're welcome," he said, not expecting actual thanks from the general. 

As expected, he didn't get one. Roy shook the chain off and kicked it aside, hearing it clank on the fine hardwood floors. He yawned sleepily and crawled under the soft, inviting blankets.

The auburn-haired teen looked as small as a child against the large bed as he curled up, tucking his knees up to his bare chest. He raised a hand and removed his royal-blue headband, the hairs falling freely now to frame his face softly.

"As for my accusation earlier… It was said without any real reason behind it. I was just looking for someone to blame this matter on. Forget and forgive this childish logic," Roy said quietly, closing his eyes. 

Marth blinked with mild surprise. If he had anything to say in response to that surprising remark, it was too late now as Roy was already fast asleep. But he probably wouldn't have answered anyways.

The exiled Prince leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes. He was tired, there was no doubt about that, but there was little to no chance that he would sleep tonight. Marth found a comfortable position in the chair and let the ice slide over him for the long night.  
  
  


The door was opened the next morning. The slave-owner was "kind" enough to allow them a generous amount of rest. It was a young girl at the door, with a beautiful body, but with a pretty face that looked like it had been though and seen hell itself. The sandy-haired girl wore a short skirt and a small, old blouse. Around her pale neck was a fancy collar- it seemed that Trave had an odd fascination with the hated things. 

"Excuse me, but Master wishes to dine with the both of you this morn," she announced softly, not quite sure if the two of them were awake. Her faded blue eyes wandered around the room, to Marth sitting in the chair and to Roy, curled up on the bed. 

To her surprise, the man in the chair's eyes were open and looking her over calmly. 

"What is it that the bastard asked you to do?" He asked of the girl. His voice was not unkindly and he tried not to scare her further.

"He told me to bring the both of you to the dining hall as soon as you are ready… Master also said that there are other clothes in the closet, if you wish to change." She said carefully, biting her lip in her nervousness. She played with the hem of her skirt, awaiting his answer. Master had told her about these two new ones: they were untrained, unbroken and she was to be careful around them.  
Marth looked her over critically out of the corner of his eye. She looked nervous. Marth snorted. 

"Clothes, the bastard says. I wonder what sort of clothes he has in mind." Marth walked over to the bed and prodded Roy. "Up, general of the army of sleep." 

"There are several sets of clothes, pieces of jewelry and other items in there." The girl interjected, her voice as quiet as before. 

Across the room, Roy rolled over, away from Marth's offending poke. He opened his eyes slowly and sat up abruptly, figuring out where he was.

"What did you call me?" He mumbled grouchily, getting out of the large bed on the opposite side as Marth.

"I called you the General of Sleep," Marth replied, walking over to a large wooden dresser. He opened the drawers to see what was inside of them.  
Within were several sets of clothes that would not have been out of place in court- jewel colored shirts, leggings, hose and tunics in expensive silks and satins. Another drawer held necklaces, bracelets, rings and earrings, all wrought in fine gold and silver and set with precious stones. Marth's practiced eye could tell that every one of them was priceless.

With a face devoid of emotion, he took a black silk tunic and a white shirt to wear under and pulled them on over the pants he was already wearing. The girl could see that his throat was red from where he had been picking at the collar all night long. She turned to Roy.

"Are you going to get dressed as well?"

The auburn-haired youth glared at her briefly before moving to the dresser. He selected a cobalt blue tunic, a startling contrast to the red and gold pants he wore.

"I'd rather you not call me anything but my own name," Roy said forcefully to Marth, referring to the title the ex-prince had called him earlier. 

Marth nodded. "I understand. Forgive my transgression."

The girl, Gwen by name, waited quietly while Roy pulled on his tunic. 

"If you'll follow me," she turned and led them down the long corridor. Marth and Roy followed behind her silently. Three pairs of feet padded quietly on the hardwood floors.

_'He's not worried about us escaping,'_ Marth realized. _'Because he knows that we can't.'_

Gwen stopped in front of a set of large heavy doors. She opened them slowly and gestured for the two of them to enter. Surprisingly, she made no move to follow.

"He's waiting for you in there."

With apprehension in their hearts, the two young men stepped into the large dining hall. A long table, so large that it could easily seat thirty people was set in the center. It was covered by a white cloth and set with fine dishes and utensils. Sitting at the head of the table was none other than Trave himself.

"Do sit down," he said with a grin. "I'll wager the both of you are positively starving." He gestured to the two chairs on either side of him with a sweeping hand. Marth and Roy sat down in them.

The slave-owner looked past them and towards the door, where the girl was still waiting for further instructions. 

"Come," Trave ordered. 

Gwen went to his side and sat lightly in his lap. He stroked her soft hair and turned to the ex-Prince and General.

"I trust you had a good nights sleep. Would you two like to eat? You are entitled to anything you want- I can't have my favorites starving, now can I?" Trave questioned.

Roy did not look at him, but instead fixed his gaze on the embroidered mantle on the table.

"I want nothing," he said flatly. Inside, however, he wanted to eat to his heart's content and replenish the energy that he had used up through the torturous journey. 

Marth studied Gwen sitting in Trave's lap. What a picture they made, the beautiful tyrant and the frightened slave-girl in his lecherous clutches.

"The only nourishment I require is bread and water." He said tonelessly. He had none of Roy's fiery pride- he had lost that the moment that Gaimen had proclaimed him in exile. He didn't care what happened, he knew that the important thing was just to survive.

Trave laughed. "How undemanding we are! But bring out whatever his Majesty desires."

Another slave brought out a plate of bread and a goblet of water and set them before Marth. He began to eat them methodically. As he did, he glanced over at Roy.

_'Your pride will kill you someday.'_ The blue-haired man thought.

The young soldier felt Marth's eyes upon him and looked up, giving the ex-Prince a look that seemed to answer: _'I'll believe it when I see it… I refuse to eat this bastard's food.'_

Marth swallowed and continued eating. If the General was fool enough to starve himself and weaken his body, it was entirely his own business.

Trave watched the two of them and smiled. These new slaves were much more amusing than any of the others. He stood up, pushing Gwen abruptly off of his lap.

"If you are done," he said. "Come to my chambers." The guards stepped up and fastened the chains once more to their collars. Trave turned and began walking down the halls with Gwen at his heels like an obedient dog. Marth and Roy followed behind, escorted by a small legion of burly guards.  
  


Once the door was closed behind them and the chains from the wall were attached to their collars, the scenario was beginning to look as it had the night before. Gwen and the guards left the room, leaving just the three of them. Roy stood tall and firm and Marth nearly shaking from fear.

"You two are such fun to watch…" Trave chuckled, once again standing a maddening mere few inches out of their reach. He turned to Roy,

"I haven't quite figured out how I'm going to break you yet, but I'm sure that it shall be great fun…" The slave-owner smiled and they could tell that the expression was backed by pure evil.

Roy's face changed totally at the snide remark. His entire body tensed and his fists clenched tightly. The general pressed foreword until he felt the pull of the cold metal around his neck.

"You won't!" He shouted angrily. "You never will! You think just because you paid money for me that I'm going to obey your every command?! Well, think again because I will defy you ev-"

A loud, resounding smack interrupted the red-haired teen's outburst as Trave backhanded him abruptly across his face.

"Silence!" Trave snapped coldly, livid with anger. He towered above the youth, who was now on the floor, a hand pressed to his stinging cheek. Roy was silent, but his downcast eyes burned with defiance.

Trave took a deep breath to calm himself and rubbed his hand absently. He turned to Marth, the sadistic smile returning to his face.

"You… Perhaps you, with a bit of training, will be better…" The slave-owner lifted his other hand to stroke Marth's blue hair softly. He leaned in closer and curled a hand around the ex-Prince's neck, drastically shortening the distance between their two faces. Quickly, he pressed his lips to Marth's.

Marth's cobalt-blue eyes widened with horrified shock and he struggled with all his might to free himself from Trave's poisonous touch. He broke the kiss and stepped several paces back, wiping the vile taste of Trave's lips from his own. He glared icy death at his owner's smirking face, not noticing that he was shaking violently.

"Hm… So cold," Trave remarked, his smirk deepening as he noticed Marth's trembling reaction. "Like kissing a beautiful marble sculpture. I believe that you will be much easier to break than your small friend over there. But it all works out so very nicely, doesn't it? I shall have somebody to amuse me until he is ready."

Upon hearing Trave's words, the blue-haired man closed his eyes and retreated to the deepest corners of his own mind- into a state of frozen near-unconsciousness. Nothing could reach him when he was so far inside of himself. He wanted to forget… Wanted to forget where he was… All the memories that were floating up from the recesses of his mind… Marth fell softly to the floor and sat huddled against the wall with his knees hugged to his chest and his head resting on them, as far away from Trave as he could possibly get. He was so far gone at this point that he could be killed and not even realize it. 

Satisfied that Marth had been completely subdued for the time being, Trave turned back to Roy.

"So what do you think of that, oh my fiery one? I shall use you and drain you until you no longer amuse me, then fill you up and use you again. You shall be mine forever."

Roy shook visibly and lifted the hand that covered the blossoming bruise on his face. He turned his eyes to the slave-owner, his fierce gaze never once wavering a bit.

"I'd say that you wouldn't be the first to try… And fail."

TBC… 

Vallen: *winces* erk… Um, I didn't really mean to cut it off there- okay, okay, maybe I did… But you guys can live, right? I'm sorry for the wait, but I was too lazy to type this one, so Xan did it! *claps* So, say thank you to Xan for finally pulling the notebook out and getting it done! Anyways, you'll have a lot of angst *grin* next time…   

Xan: Well, that's all for that chapter.  Hopefully, the next one will be out MUCH quicker.  Hope ya liked it!!  


	6. Pain

"Fubuki no Kaen" 

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes: Xan: Here it is! The next chapter! We managed to get this one out a helluva lot quicker too. A note on Marth's parents' name: As far as I know, Marth's parents are never named, so I made them up. If you know their real names and feel the need to correct me, tell me and I'll remember for future reference. Thanx!

Vallen: Hmm… Nothing really much to say, except you get a lot of Marth-and-Roy-alone-time in this part… Deep thoughts!

Thanks to: LilFilipinoGurl(*chows down on the cookies and keeps them away from Xan* Hehe… That was _supposed_ to be disgusting! Trave is not a likable character, but we love him anyways!), tikimoof( naw, you suck at reviews! Anything is better than nothing! Plus, don't worry, you're just addicted to torture… It's VERY common. Both Xan and I are past all help and hope… There is no cure!), V-Amy( More spirals! Pretty… *gets dizzy and stops* Yes, she is! I'm so glad you noticed poor little Gwen…), Areatha, Defender of Opinions( We DO feel honored! Thank you! Yes, yes, feel sorry for them! That's what we want… I think. Heh.), turquoisefox( … lazy butt(S)… But hey, its summer- we're allowed… Sometimes!), Mirrormere(Rat bastard? Ee-hee-hee… Funny! I'll have to tell him you said that… (Trave:*growl*…) But anyways, we like writing him… Glad you're reading!), Asudem( *happy tears* *pokes Xan* Did you hear that? We made someone feel better! I'm so happy! *pats back*), Sneasel( Sadly, I didn't indulge in my wicked fantasies… We fast-forwarded in time… Because if I had actually written the torture, I probably would have to change to rating… O.o… We have a banner now… Go see! I'll put the link up further down… Oh, and we'd love to have our fic mentioned on a site! What's the URL?), and Li Kayun( *glares at ff.net* gr… But anyways, yes, you got the character development and there's more soon, but the plot doesn't REALLY pick up again till next chapter… And I'm not allowed to say more than that…)   

Also, since the mentioning of "xan and vallen banners" inspired me (Thanks, Sneasel!!), I made a little pic… Go see it here: http://groups.msn.com/AnimeFreaksRUs/vallenssecondgallery.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=486

  
  


_Ten days later…_

Roy stared up at the ceiling blankly. He didn't bother nor did he have the strength to move from the spread-eagled position that his body had been forced to endure for more than a week. Perhaps it was because his limbs were chained to each corner of the large bed, or maybe it was because he looked like he had suffered, the marks of cruelty plainly visible on his skin.

It had been ten days. Ten entire days of torture and pain served by none other than the sadist, the man he now knew as Master.

A soft creak told him that Trave had gotten off the bed, but not before he placed a rough kiss on Roy's unresponsive lips.

"Sorry to be so hard on you, but it was necessary," Trave said, not a shred of regret in his voice whatsoever.

Shortly after the slave-owner had left, the door was once again pushed open and the ex-Prince Marth was shoved inside. Roy's eyes flickered and sweat beaded across his forehead, dripping down his face to mingle with dry, crusty blood and stinging as it entered the small cuts there. Marth could not see him like this! But fortunately for Roy, the ex-prince didn't look like he was in a position to notice much of anything. What little clothing he still wore hung in rags off his thin and battered body and his dirty, unkempt blue hair fell unchecked into his face. Like Roy, dark bruises and cuts littered his raw body, tokens of Trave's sadistic methods of breaking him. Unlike the red-haired teen, however, most of his wounds were self-inflicted. 

The icy Prince had been just as much a challenge for Trave to break as Roy had been, but in a completely different way. While Roy's spirit had been beaten out of him, Marth's had destroyed itself. 

The ex-monarch was shoved into a sitting position next to the bed to which Roy was chained. The guards didn't bother to restrain him in any other way aside from the ever-present shackles and collar. They knew he was too weak and too beaten to try anything. 

Once the guards had gone, the two young men were left alone in utter silence. They stayed like that for a long time before Marth stirred. Wordlessly, he stood up and unchained Roy. The mechanism was simple, but it required two hands to release. He sat back down, with his knees hugged to his chest and his face buried in his arms. Try as he might, Trave hadn't been able to completely shatter Marth's icy soul… Yet. It was intact at the moment, but it was uncertain how much longer it would be able to hold up under the conditions. 

The auburn-haired youth inhaled sharply as his limbs were finally released from their long tension. His torn and stretched muscles screamed in pain as he rolled himself over bonelessly to face his former Prince.

"Hey," he called hoarsely, trying not to remember what had caused his voice to weaken to nothing more than a rough whisper. "W-what did you do that for?" 

Marth lifted his head and turned it slowly to look at him.

"Because I wanted to," his voice was raspy as well. "Because nobody should be forced to be like that."

"Oh. Well, thank you…" Roy said uncomfortably, unable to move any more. He laid there, staring at Marth with a mixed expression on his face. 

"How did you become a General?" Marth asked completely out of the blue. He turned his icy face towards Roy, his face questioning.

The auburn-haired teen looked incredulous for a moment. What had come over Marth? Then he forced his tense muscles to relax.

"Why would you want to know about me?" He paused and shook his head. "Aw, what the hell… I'll tell you," He pushed himself up, wincing in pain. 

"It started when I was little, a little while after I lost my parents. I was watching Brock train his men and I became interested. So I snuck into the armory and I was disgusted at myself once I discovered that I couldn't even lift a full-sized sword. So the next day I asked him to train me like one of his soldiers… I think he laughed a bit and explained to me what I was getting into, but I was determined.

"The next few years were the same; learning, fighting, and training until Brock decided that I was of age and skill to be made a soldier under him. That was when I was nine… I believe you know all about the rest from there. Defeating your uncle and claiming my former rank, which had never done before by a low-born kid," he said spitefully. "They didn't think I could do it… And now," Roy fell back onto the bed. "I'm reduced to this." 

Marth looked at him and tugged unconsciously at his ornate collar. "When I once again recover my place as King of Altea, I shall return you to your proper and true rank."

The ex-General looked at him with surprise. His tired and weary eyes blinked at Marth.

"You would do something that great in my favor even though I have spoken nothing but harsh words to you? Even though you do not know when you'll see the light of day again?"

Nodding, Marth shrugged,

"It is through no fault of our own that we find ourselves lowered to this. And I don't believe you to be as uncaring as you'd prefer others to believe."

"You're just saying that because you haven't seen me in battle. I bet I could beat you in no time, just like your uncle." Roy spat, glaring at Marth, but not quite with the intensity and fire as before.

Marth shrugged again and leaned back against the wall, closing his eyes. "Perhaps. But keep in mind that I'm not exactly a novice with a blade."

At that moment, the cell door opened and a guard walked in carrying a platter of food. He set it down on the floor and left without even looking at them. Roy's eyes followed the guard closely until he had left. Then the bright orbs eyed the plate of food as if it were poison.

"Bastard…" He hissed.

Disregarding Roy's words, Marth crawled (Oh, how Trave would love to see this, he thought) over to the food and pulled it back over next to the bed. He began to eat it slowly, trying to make it last.

"You're not doing anybody any favors by starving yourself," he said quietly. "Not even you."

Roy's empty stomach throbbed painfully and he forced himself to ignore it. He refused to look at the food.

"He'll make me eat if it gets serious… But I ask you one thing: Do you keep yourself alive for your country or for yourself?"

Marth stopped and looked over at Roy with perplexity in his normally emotionless eyes. 

"I… Until now I thought they were the same. I never expected anything from my life except to become King and to rule my people. But now… I'm not so sure."

"That's what I thought." With fierce determination, the battered auburn-haired teen held onto one of the bedposts and pulled himself to his feet. His legs shook unsteadily, but held. "It sounds to me that you aren't ready to be King. I served your father and he had an attitude nothing like yours. You need to think about what you're getting into and how you're going to do it." He spoke those words and walked unsteadily to the washroom with as much dignity as he could muster.

Marth looked after Roy with something akin to astonishment. The boy-General had just spoken the exact truth, or very nearly it.

His father… The former King Zenreth had been headstrong and had always known exactly what he wanted and how to get it, quite the opposite of his calm, focused son. Zenreth had gone after his goals with such tenacity that he stopped just short of being ruthless. Marth had never seen the logic in the way Zenreth handled problems- with brash confidence and almost no foresight. The Prince had always been more subtle and used tact and cunning to win his battles. In truth, Marth was much more like his mother, Queen Fione than his father, both in appearance and temperament. Marth could remember his father scolding him as a child for being too indecisive and un-aggressive, while his mother nodded with approval when Zenreth was out of the room.

"Do I even want to be King?" He asked aloud, surprising himself. "_Should_ I be King? Perhaps Gaimen is doing a better job than I would. Is a false King better than a weak one?"

Marth leaned his head back against the wall and put on his icy mask. He was tired and wished to escape from the haunting questions. He dropped slowly off to sleep, dreaming of less confusing matters.  
  
  


Roy carefully lowered himself into the large, porcelain bathtub. The water burned his broken skin, causing him to hiss sharply with pain. It was as if fire was licking unmercifully at his wounds. 

He reached over and grabbed a fine white cloth used for cleaning oneself. It and the water were soon dyed blood red as he ran it over his body, trying to get at least somewhat clean.

_'He's a fool. He doesn't know what he wants,'_ the teen thought angrily, remembering the exiled Prince's words. 

Roy fell asleep like that, his back leaning against the cold inside of the tub, arms dangling lightly over the side with the reddish water lapping softly at chest level.  
  
TBC…  
  
Xan: Well, I hope everybody likes it! This chapter was a little more focused on them, I think. Somebody asked for that. But it doesn't mean we've gotten soft! Just wait for the next chapter! *maniacal laughter*

Vallen: *cheers* Action in the next chapter! *starts laughing with xan*… *stops and looks at her* Now get typing so they can hurry up and read it!


	7. Freedom

Fubuki no Kaen

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes:

Xan:  Well, here it is!  We had a lot of fun writing this one, so I hope all of you will have as much fun reading it!  Beware, kinda bloody.  *giggles*  Well, don't say I didn't warn you…

Vallen: Yes, I agree! More blood than usual, but what can we say, we like it. What blood, you say? Go ahead and find out… Oh, and did anybody look at the link that I put up last chapter…? Just checking…

Thanks to: RcA (It's okay! Just as long as you're still reading! *blinks* You're dreading the end? Well, we haven't even hit the tip of the iceberg yet in this little ficcie… heheh… Just a warning…), Aynari Hayami (*big grin* You have no idea how good it is to hear that! Yay! We are so glad that we have succeeded as authors… Did you hear that, Xan?), LiL PriNCeSs Me (We are cruel because we have to be… to have fun. ^__^ Don't worry, the chapters won't be as short as that one… We'll try!), Jiji (Oh, a newcomer! Found us, have you? You're very welcome… We indulge in our fantasies… Don't mind us.), and turquoisefox (Thank you so much for the info! But I think Xan's going to keep the name she had… Her face kinda went sour once she saw "Cornelius"… She doesn't want her "baby" having a  "Cornelius" for a father… Oh well. Thanks anyways and we love your feedback! *hug*).

The auburn-haired teen felt strong arms lifting him out of the water and carrying him across the washroom.  

          "…Marth?"  He asked groggily, the name slipping from his tongue.  

          "You were a bad Pet…  You fell asleep in the tub…  Look at your skin now…" The Slaver admonished, setting Roy down in a chair.  He took a towel and began to dry the teen off none too gently.

          Roy clamped his mouth shut and shrank away from the older man, or as much as he was allowed to.  The slave-owner dressed him in new clothes altogether once he was dry.  He was now dressed in a pair of black shorts and a small red and gold sleeveless tunic that displayed much of his abdomen.  The red, glaring wounds dealt by Trave now stood out more than ever.

          Trave frowned,

          "I had hoped that a night's rest would help you, but you're still tired…" he mused as picked the boy up once again, this time carrying him to a majestic purple couch across from the bed.  

          Roy sat there, staring emptily at the floor.  He hated being treated like a doll, but it was all he could do to avoid getting hurt again.  His cobalt eyes raised a little to watch Trave cross the room towards where Marth laid on the floor.

          "Let's wake up 'Sleeping Beauty,' shall we?"

          The Slaver prodded Marth's ribs with one sharp-toed boot.

          "Up, Pet.  I cannot allow you to sleep all day."

          Marth opened his eyes, instantly awake.  Trave pulled him roughly to his feet and the exiled Prince looked around the room coldly, glaring into his owner's eyes.  Trave cuffed him sharply and took hold of his collar to lead him to the washroom.  He forced Marth to strip and pushed him into the bathtub and began to bathe him, taking no regard to the pain it put Marth through.  Marth's face burned with shame, not only because Roy was watching, but because of the indignity to which he had been lowered.

          Once he was "properly cleaned," as Trave had put it, he was made to put on an outfit similar to Roy's, but instead of a red and gold tunic, his was silver and royal blue.

          Now that both Marth and Roy were washed and dressed up like the playthings that they were, the slave owner stood back and admired his own handiwork with sadistic glee in his eyes.

          "Much better," he remarked to nobody in particular. "Today, we are going to do something different."

          Marth and Roy's identical eyes looked up at the Trave with apprehension showing in both of them.  Trave smiled at the sight.

          "That's right.  You have every reason to be scared…" He chuckled.

          The slave-owner then produced a pair of golden chains.  He first went over to the frighteningly still ex-Prince and used one chain to connect one of his wrists to another.  There was now about a foot and a half of cold, loose chain between each of Marth's wrists.

          Once Roy was chained as well, he stared at the string of metal, eyes widening slightly.  He had never expected to actually get out of this nightmarish place, but here the answer was, staring him in the face. He got up off the couch and slowly walked over to Trave.  Then, the auburn-haired teen took a deep breath, leaned up and kissed the sadistic man on the lips.

          At first, Trave's reaction was surprise, but it turned quickly to greed and he took control almost immediately.  He was so absorbed on ravishing the teen's lips and mouth that he didn't notice a pair of shackled hands raise up towards his head.

          With an intricate twisting motion, Roy wrapped the chain around Trave's neck tightly and began to pull with all of his might.  

          The sadistic man let out a choking sound and with an angry, strangled roar, started kicking and hitting at Roy, trying to dislodge both him and the chain.  The ex-General did not let up, although his strength was ebbing.

          "Help me!"  He cried to Marth.

          Marth, who had been watching in pseudo-shock went to help him instantly.  Throwing his own chain around Trave's neck as Roy had done, Marth used his greater size to wrestle Trave to the floor.  The slave-owner struggled wildly, still trying to fling the two rebellious slaves from his body.  One well-placed punch caught Marth on the eye.  Another caught Roy's already sore abdomen.  Marth saw that Roy's hold on Trave was weakening and hit his owner over the head with all the strength he could muster, given the position that he was in.  The blow dazed Trave, but not enough.

          Both Marth and Roy were so focused on what they were doing that they didn't notice Trave's hand snake around and seize a concealed knife until it was too late.  He lunged with the knife and gouged a deep wound in Roy's thigh.  The boy-General cried out in pain and fell down as far as the chain would let him, practically hanging from Trave's throat.  He shuddered violently as thick red, blood poured from his leg.

          It is said that a person can live without air for a matter of four minutes.  The two unwilling slaves held on for at least that long before Trave let out one last choking sound and fell, limp and lifeless to the floor.

          Roy unwound his chain quickly with shaking hands and fell away from the slave-owner.  He forced his erratic breathing to slow and with a hiss of pain, pressed a stray article of clothing to his wound.  The stark white cloth began to turn bright red, the color of fresh blood.  Once the seeping flow of life-blood had begun to lessen, he tied another cloth around his thigh as a makeshift bandage.  The auburn-haired teen lay there, breathing deeply and turned his head and gaze to his ex-Prince by Trave's body.

          Marth was stilly lying beside Trave's still-warm corpse.  His hair was disheveled and his eyes were closed, a nasty purple bruise forming around one.  His chest rose and fell with his deep, ragged breathing.  The chain that bound his wrists was still wrapped around Trave's throat.  Slowly, he sat up and unwound it, taking extra care to make sure that he didn't touch the vile murdered man any more than was absolutely necessary.  Once he was free, Marth stumbled to his feet and walked over to where Roy was.  He sat down next to him, getting himself under control.  

          "Are you… okay?"  He asked, looking at the bloody bandage.

          Roy's fire flared up and he glared at Marth.

          "Of _course_ I'm not okay, dammit!  What do you _think_?!"  He growled spitefully. "Now how can I get out of here with my leg like this?!"  

          Before Marth even had a chance to answer, the door slid open with an ominous creak…

          Gwen, the frightened slave-girl stood there, her eyes fixated on the carnage laid before her, the blood, the knife and the dead body.

          "W-what… happened?" She whispered, voice wavering. Her large eyes were impossibly wider.

          Roy looked at her incredulously.

          "What, are you _sad_ that he's _dead_?"

          Gwen shook her head, her too-thin frame trembling.

          Marth looked at the slave-girl intently, taking in her state with just a glance.  Wordlessly, he pushed himself up and walked over to her, looking down into her blue eyes softly, yet commanding.

          "You know the way out of here, you will lead us the most inconspicuous way possible.  Do you understand?"  He asked.

          Gwen nodded, looking up at Marth with her wide eyes.  She turned to the door.

          "Hurry, before others get suspicious."

          Marth turned and walked over to where Roy was lying on the floor and quickly slung the disabled ex-General onto his back.

          "W-what are you doing?!"  Roy gasped with surprised, half in shock and half in pain.

          Gwen stepped out into the hall to check it for people, then came back in after a few minutes.  She seemed to have more courage then she had before.  

          "Not many people are up yet…  And since Master hasn't given, nor will give them orders, they have no need to.  I can get you out the back of the manor to the stables.  You'll be on your own from there…  Can you deal with the gate guards with these?"  She produced the very same bundle that that had been given to Trave from Allen the slave trader.  Their swords, armor and a few other possessions were still in there, along with the gold pieces, surprisingly enough.

          "I managed to get this out of Master Trave's rooms…" She said, handing it to Marth.

          Marth nodded and took it from her.  "We'll be fine.  Just get us out of the manor."  He fished around in the bundle and brought out a few gold pieces, which he handed to Gwen.

          "For your help," he told her. "Get out of here as soon as you can."

          Gwen stared at the money for a second before pocketing it.

          "Follow me," she beckoned them out into the hall.

          Marth tightened his grip on the bundle and shifted Roy's position on his back before following her.

          Gwen tiptoed down the halls, Marth carrying Roy right behind her.  She led them through several dark and deserted corridors.  Fortunately they never chanced upon any other slaves or guards.  Finally, they emerged at the stables.

          "This is where I leave you," Gwen said. "May the gods give you luck on your journey."

          Marth nodded and Gwen vanished back into the house.  He turned and looked around.  There were several fine horses in the stable.  They could steal two to escape quickly, but it would be much harder to remain unnoticed.  He hesitated a moment, trying to decide what to do.

          "Horses…" Roy whispered in his ear.  He moved in such a way that showed Marth that he wanted to be let down.  "If you intend to stay with me after we get out of here, by horseback is the only way I can travel in this condition."

          Marth set Roy down on the ground and ran a practiced eye over the horses.  One in particular stood out, a tall dappled grey stallion.  It looked strong, but fast enough to make a quick getaway.  He led the horse out and put a bridle on it, not bothering with a saddle.  The ex-Prince opened the bundle and drew out his sword along with Roy's.  Turning around, he saw that Roy was already mounted on a black mare that was a bit smaller than his grey.  The boy-General was looking impatiently at Marth.  Marth handed Roy his sword silently and slung the bundle on his back before getting on his own horse.

          Without a word, the general urged his horse on with his good leg, taking off into a fast gallop out of the stable.  The lean mare was just as fast as he predicted and he reached the gate in no time.

          The guards shouted at him, but before they could draw their own swords, he cut them down with his.  Once they were down, it was only a matter of seconds before he maneuvered the horse alongside the gate and opened it just enough for a horse to go through. 

          The teen looked back and saw Marth come up beside him.  He sat tensely on his mare's back, breathing deeply and ignoring the blood running down his leg.

          "Let's just go…"

          Marth nodded and spurred his tall grey stallion into a gallop with Roy right beside him, leaving the manor and Trave far behind him.

~~~~~~~~  
  


          Marth and Roy rode for a long time to get as far away from the manor that had been their hell.  They rode until the horses' coats were white with lather and they were beginning to stumble.  

          A thick wood was where they finally decided to stop.  A small well-hidden clearing set next to a swift stream provided an excellent camp for the night.  Marth dismounted and led the sweaty grey over to a tree to tie him up.  He didn't let him drink from the cold stream right away, lest he colic.

          He looked over at Roy, who had done the same.

          "How is your wound?" He asked quietly, ignoring his own swollen eye.  

          "I don't know," the teen answered curtly, limping over to the stream. "I'll have to look at it."

          Roy sat down next to the water and began to unwrap the bloody cloth from around his thigh.  The wound had begun to clot, slowing the blood flow, but a filmy, yellow layer had formed over it.  Roy looked at it in disgust, scooped up a handful of water and began to clean it.  He glanced at Marth,

          "I've had worse.  It's nothing that'll kill me."

          "I'm aware of that," Marth replied in his monotone voice.  He turned and led his grey and Roy's black, which were now sufficiently cooled down, over to the stream to drink.

          As they drank, Marth noticed that as the sun sank, the air grew colder.  Winter was coming- this did not bode well for the two escapees.  The exiled Prince set his face into a grim mask of ice.  They would think of something…

          He turned back to find that Roy had re-bandaged his leg using a strip of cloth from his shirt.  The boy-general was lying on the ground, his scantily clad body shivering just a bit.  Marth tethered the horses again, allowing them enough rein to graze, and sat down a little ways away from Roy.  He glanced at the goy-general once, then looked down as his still chained-and-shackled wrists.

          "If we sleep next to each other, we'll be warmer," he said softly.

          Roy gave him a look, seeing if Marth had any ulterior motive, then decided that Marth had spoken the truth.  He crawled the short way to Marth's side, wincing when he moved his wounded leg excessively.  The teen curled up on the ground next to Marth, just barely touching him.  He was asleep before he could even think that he would regret sleeping this close to the ex-Prince in the morning.

Xan: Well, how was that?  No more torture, at least for the time being.  *sniff sniff*  It is a pity to kill off Trave tho… he was such a fun character…

Vallen: *cheers* Whooo-hooo! Ding dong, the Trave is dead, the wicked- Alright, I'll stop. *looks around nervously* heh… You guys will get a lot more "Marth and Roy alone time" in the next few chapters… We've got to work on that relationship of theirs… Tell us what you think!


	8. Behind Fubuki no Kaen 2

Behind Fubuki no Kaen 2

As told by Vallen

8/5/02

Wow… Our little story has grown by so much… The next chapter won't be out for a few days, so I'm hoping this will tide you guys over until then. First of all, I'd like to thank every one of you that has been reading this and giving your support! You're part of the reason why we have so much fun doing this! Those of you who don't think that you're going to get bored with this, I'm warning you that you're in for the long haul… This is a long fic. Xan and I love to write, so we do.

I feel like I have to explain more on the yaoi issue, now that the story has progressed further. I realize that some of you may be frustration on how slow the romance part is coming, but believe me, we are taking it slow for a reason. I mean, it wouldn't be plausible for Marth or Roy to just turn to one another and profess their undying love all of a sudden. *shakes head* That's just not how it goes… In the notebook, we are in the beginnings of something that will change Marth and Roy forever… *sweatdrop* It's not like we haven't already had experiences that aren't life changing, but this is very different. I can't wait for it all to get typed up and see what you guys think! ^_^ But Xan was gone for a week and she has been in charge of the typing lately… We hope to get going soon though… Rest assured!

And now that Trave is dead, I bet you guys are wondering what is going to happen. The whole sub-plot with Trave was planned as something to get Marth and Roy to know each other… Not to mention indulge our own twisted fantasies. I apologize for any cliffhangers back there- We just decided that those spots were good places to end. Now that our pretty heroes are in the forests of Altea, they decide to get back on their feet and journey home in hopes to save Marth's kingdom from Gaimen. But what will the long road bring them?

Damn… Now I'm running out of things to say. Xan was bugging me to do another one of these things, but now that I've spoken my mind, I've run out of words! I'm sure I'll think of something… Bear with me here. Alright, I just played SSMB the day before yesterday and I just had to look at Marth and Roy, since neither me or Xan actually owns a GameCube. I realized how young Roy looks and how mature Marth looks, and that made me re-evaluate how I wrote, I hadn't seen the characters in a while, so that helped me a lot. Those of you who own SSBM are lucky! 

Spoiler warning… Those of you who spotted how we used the opposites of ice and fire for Marth and Roy will soon see why. It is because we are in Altea, a land of fantasy and mystery, where anything can happen. *sweatdrop* Also, because authors have free reign over the characters and their writing…

I think I wrote this mainly because I wanted to talk about the yaoi situation and I have, which is good. I hope you guys enjoy the next chapters as much as you enjoyed the first six (not counting the first Behind F.no.K). Also, in your reviews, feel free to say what's on your mind- we won't mind. Again, I thank you, the readers, and Xan.

-Vallen

Poll: *evil smirk* uhhh… Xan's going to kill me, but who do you guys think is prettier, Marth or Roy? *sends subliminal waves, telling you to vote for Roy* 

*hears Xan yelling in the distance and scampers off*


	9. Recovery

"Fubuki no Kaen" 

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes: Xan: Well, this is the chapter for all of you who wanted more "Marth and Roy together time."  Here it is, an entire chapter of nothing but them and well… Them.  Enjoy!

Vallen: Alright, it wasn't that long between chapters, was it? Oh, and I have to say that we absolutely loved all your reviews… So many! ^^ Happy reading! … ps. Xan gets to do the "thank you"'s this time… 

Thanks to:  Asudem (Yai, crying?  Wow, I guess that means that we've really written this well!  *cheers*  Yes, more Marth and Roy together time!), The Inflammable Shoopuf (I'm afraid there aren't many Trave fans out there to be mobbed by… Just me, Vallen and I think one other person…), turquoisefox (Cornelius… *makes a face*  Yuck.  Yay, you have high standards for us!  Let's hope we keep living up to them…  And no, I've never seen the Fire Emblem series.  I just wrote him how I thought he'd be.  Scary!), Sneasel (YES!  I KNEW somebody else liked Trave besides me'n Vallen!  I think he was cool!  And a blast to write.  It's not often you get to write pure evil.  ^_^  And thanks for the compliment on the picture!  Vallen made that, so all the credit belongs to her.  And more thanks for the mention on your deadjournal!  We felt so appreciated!), tikimoof (Who knows?  But thanks for reviewing this one!), Darkwulfe (*blinks* Fluffiness?  I don't know if we can do fluffiness… but we can try! And we update as much as I can!), dani and the voices (A few simple words of advice for you, my friend:  PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE!), RcA (eeh.  So we have Trave lovers and Trave haters.  Oh well, dun worry about it.  He's quite dead and we have no plans on resurrecting him!  And you'll just have to see…), Li Kayun (Ack, I didn't realize that Trave was around for so long until you pointed it out.  Whoops.  But yes, we are taking things slow for a reason.  It adds to the story, doncha think?  And we won't quite get to saving the kingdom yet…  Too many other things to do.  It's a long fic, so there's plenty of time for all that.  ^_^), Sakuragirl02 (Bwahahaha!  Yes, pressure!  But here it is, so be happy!), Kanashimi Ame (Thank you!  Keep reading, it'll only get better!  Hopefully anyways…), dragyn-chan (We've hooked another one!  *looks like an insane fisherman*  Thanks for the compliment!  A few people have complained that we're taking TOO long…  But there WILL be more later, I promise!), LiL PriNCeSs Me (*sly look*  What did you think we were gonna do?  Have we done it?  I'm kinda interested now in what you thought…  Do tell!), Yoshimars (Where did all the fluff requests come from?  I didn't think this was a fluffy fic… Maybe it depends on your defination of fluff… Anyways, I hope this chapter is good enough for you!), HOBO-Jo (Gnarly! I love it!  Thanks!), Evil Anime Chick (*blinks* "Sweaty hot wild swordie sex???"  Okay then!  We'll do the best we can!), LilFilipinoGurl aka Fuzion (Thank you for making an exception for our li'l fic!), Just a random person (Everybody likes Roy better!  But that's cool.  That means I get Marth-chan all to myself!  *huggles Marth*  Thanks!), A. Person (Oh trust me, you'll be seeing quite a bit more of Marth and Roy.  This fic is NOT ending any time soon!), Spectrum (Many, many thanks!  We really loved your feedback!  And you'll just have to see…), Unproductivity (Gods, I nearly shrieked when I read your review!  We LOVE Mercedes Lackey and Magic's Pawn is the BEST!  Vanyel-chan!  *glomps him*  I've never tried my hand at Mercedes Lackey fanfiction, but I think Vallen did once… Maybe I should…)

Roy woke up shivering, but not as hard as he had been before he had gone to sleep.  Perhaps it was because of the body heat eminating from the young man lying beside him.

          '_What_?!' Warning signs went off in his head and he let go of the ex-prince's arm, which he had been hugging.

          The teen moved away quickly to hide behind the other side of the tree that they had been sleeping under.  He felt his face grow hot and he sat there, mind racing.

          Marth made a sleepy noise and rolled over onto his side.  He opened his eyes and saw Roy sitting a little ways away, his face flushed.  He wondered briefly what could have made Roy embarrassed, but dismissed it.  Whatever it was, it wasn't any of his business.

          The exiled Prince stood up and ran his fingers through his already tousled blue hair.  It was getting long- if he didn't cut it soon, it would reach his shoulders.  

          "Take off your shirt," he said, turning to Roy.

          The General looked at him incredulously, wrapping his arms protectively over his chest.  

          "W-what?" His face turned an even darker shade of red.

          Marth merely looked at him.

          "I'm going to go exchange these clothes for something less obvious," he walked over to his horse and untied him. "I'd ask you for your pants as well, but I have a feeling you wouldn't enjoy sitting around here naked until I got back."

          Roy got up unsteadily, leaning on the tree.  He had relaxed some and his cheeks returned to their normal color.

          "You mean you're leaving?"

          "Just for the day.  We need new clothes- these aren't warm enough for winter and they're not exactly discreet," Marth took a pin from his hair and freed himself from the golden shackles that bound his wrists.  Luckily, they had not impeded his movement so far, being so loose, but it would be a bad idea to wear them amongst people.  He let them fall to the ground with distaste.  The collar was another problem, one that Marth was currently unable to do anything about.  The lock needed a key to open and that key was far away from where they were.  Marth tossed the pin to Roy to allow him to free himself as well and then grabbed his body armor.  It would hopefully hide the collar and prevent people from asking too many questions.  

          "I'll exchange our clothes and shackles for more suitable ones, buy a little food and some bandages," Marth swung himself up on his grey stallion after putting his own exchangable items in a pack.  He held a hand out for Roy's.  "I"ll be back as soon as I can."

          Roy took the pin in his hand and removed his shackles and shirt, handing them to Marth.  The ex-prince put them in his pack and galloped away with a wordless goodbye.

          The former General let out a sigh and sank back down to the ground.  It hurt to put his full weight on both legs, so he opted to sit for the most part.  But he ignored his bodily aches and confronted those of the soul.

          '_What's happening to me_?  _I slept near him for warmth, that's all_…  _But why was I so flustered_?'  He clenched a fist and laid down, suddenly feeling tired again.  '_Dammit, just ignore it_…'

          Marth rode out of the woods and emerged onto a large, grassy meadow.  He could tell from the amount of wear on the path that he found cutting through the tall grass that there was a village nearby.  One large enough to at least have a trading post of some kind…  Sure enough, once he followed the path, he came upon a small village.

          It was little more than a small street with a few dwellings and stores on either side, along with an inn.  He looked around and saw a small shop that claimed to sell and trade for a large assortment of goods.  He put the horse in the small stable and went inside.

          The interior of the store was rather cramped, but clean and altogether well kept.  Marth closed his eyes for a moment and concentrated on making himself as un-memorable as possible.  But in a place this small, the news of _any_ stranger would spread quickly.  He walked over to the counter and placed the bundle with their clothes and shackles on it.  

          "I need to know how much I can get for these," he said in his quiet, commanding voice.  "I need two sets of winter clothing, one for a large boy and another for a man about my size.  I also need several yards of bandages."

          The shopkeeper didn't look fazed at all by Marth's requests, but he did keep glancing up at the blue-haired man.  When he opened the bundle, his eyes widened, but he kept his shock to a minimum.

          "These will more than cover the price of the clothes and bandages," the shopkeeper said, calculating quickly in his mind. "But perhaps I can interest you in some of our other items…"

          "I'd like that knife," Marth said, eyeing the hunting knife on the wall behind the counter.  The shopkeeper took it down for him, applauding Marth's decision.

          "Excellent choice, sir.  Very sharp and not a fault on it.  Is there anything else that I can get for you?"

          "That will be all," Marth said firmly.  

          The shopkeeper hid his disappointment and got the items that Marth had requested and gave him the change- several gold pieces.

          "Are you sure that's all I can do for you sir?"  The shopkeeper asked, still hopeful that Marth would change his mind.  The ex-prince shook his head and silently walked out with his purchases.

          After leaving the shop, he went to the tavern and bought as much bread as he could with the change from the shop.  It came out to several good-sized loaves, ensuring that he and Roy wouldn't go hungry, at least not for a while.  

          It didn't take long to get all the items needed and Marth was soon riding back to the clearing.

          Roy awoke to the sound of hoofbeats and opened his eyes slowly.  He moaned groggily and moved a bit to look in the direction that the horse was coming from.  His body felt unbelievably sore and the longing for food had grown worse, seeing as he had eaten nothing for the past few weeks.

          He saw Marth astride the big, grey stallion, carrying a bundle of what he hoped to be clothes and food.  The wind and picked up, the dropping temperature an omnipresent reminder of the oncoming winter.

          Then there was the matter of his leg wound.  It would heal, but would hinder their travel for a while.  Maybe Marth had brought him bandages as well.

          Marth dismounted and tied up the stormy grey next to Roy's black mare.  He felt Roy's eyes on him as he turned and walked over to where he was lying.  The ex-Prince kneeled down next to Roy and placed the bundle between them, pulling out each item in turn.  The clothing, bandages, bread and knife were revealed, to Roy's secret delight.  He wanted to eat the bread right then and there, but Marth's voice stopped him.

          "Uncover your wound,"

          Roy complied, knowing that it was, at least for the moment, more important than his growling stomach. 

          Marth studied the raw, red wound.  Roy knew enough about injuries from the battlefield to dress it properly so it wasn't infected, but it did need to be rebandaged.  Luckily, Marth had gotten more than enough and knew some healing himself.  He rewrapped Roy's wound neatly enough to satisfy even a real Healer.  Once that was done, he handed Roy the smaller set of winter clothing.

          "For you," he said quietly. "They should be warmer…"

          "Thanks," Roy replied gruffly and pulled the neutral-colored long-sleeved shirt on.  Over that he put on a dark red tunic that had shorter sleeves than the shirt.  Then, being extra careful of his wound, he pulled on a pair of black breeches and sat back against the tree.

          "When do we leave?"

          "As soon as you're healed enough to ride effectively," Marth answered, pulling on his own clothes- a dark grey long-sleeved shirt with a dark blue tunic over and black breeches, all similar to Roy's.  He picked up a loaf of bread and handed it to Roy, nibbling on another one himself.  

          "I'm going to try to find some game.  Can you build a fire?" He asked.

          "I _can_ ride effectively!" The teen protested, eating the fresh bread in a hurry. "I just don't want to sit around here, idle!"

          Roy stood again and glared at Marth, looking him straight in the eye.

          "This is not a camp-out, but if you must have a fire, then I'll make one." He growled.  With that, he marched off as seriously as he could in search of dry wood.

          Marth ignored Roy's harsh words and concentrated on placing the remaining half of his loaf back in the bundle for later.  He wasn't ever bothered by the cold and never had been, but something told him that the temperature was going to drop dramatically during the night and unless they had a fire, Roy would freeze.  

          …Not that the boy-General's pride would ever let him admit as much, Marth thought as he stood up.  He would probably die before he admitted a weakness.  _He_ had the character more befitting of a Prince, not Marth.  Again, Roy's question, "Do you live for yourself or for your country?" echoed in Marth's mind and he set his face into the icy mask again.  He would not answer the question until he was absolutely sure of his reply and believed it with all his heart.

          He grabbed the hunting knife and sword and vanished into the woods on foot.

          Roy stumbled through the woods angrily, picking up strips of wood and branches as he went until his arms were full.

          '_He is not my nanny_…  _I am perfectly capable of doing things for myself_! He thought furiously.

          The clearing where the ex-Prince and General had decided to settle was empty aside from the horses, indicating that Marth had left again.  Roy gathered a few stones, made a ring and, with a piece of flint, set to work on building a fire.  

          Marth returned a short while later with a skinned rabbit.  Roy had a blazing fire going already, which was lucky, as it had gotten much colder when the sun had set.  He stepped back into the clearing, noticing the scowl on Roy's face.  Marth sighed inwardly.  He was somewhat used to his companion's moodiness, but it was still not pleasant to be the brunt of all his anger.

          The young teen stayed silent, brooding deeply within his mind.  He sat close to the fire, rubbing his cold hands in an attempt to keep them warm.  Marth walked over and speared the rabbit on a sharp stick.  He then constructed a sort of spit over the fire and set about roasting the rabbit.  They split and ate it, savoring the much-needed nutrition.  Roy didn't notice Marth subtley giving him most of it.

          When they were finished, the exiled Prince sat a little ways away from both Roy and the fire with his knees pulled to his chest and his chin resting upon them, staring into the fire, face expressionless.  Roy looked at him scornfully once before curling up and going to to sleep.  

          The next morning was bright, making the frost upon the plants and the ground shimmer.  The auburn-haired teen shook his head and moved around to try to get his blood circulating.  He stood stiffly and walked slowly around the camp, then to his stolen black horse, absently making himself busy with adjusting the tack.

          "Highness," Roy said automatically, waking Marth from his light doze. "I can prove you wrong.  I can ride effectively and I think that it's best that we keep moving…  Winters are harsh and I have seen too many of them turn deadly."

          Marth stared inwardly at Roy's abrupt change of personality, but said nothing outwardly.  Wordlessly, he looked around the camp.  Roy had already disposed of their debris and it looked almost exactly as it had had when they had arrived.  The blue-haired man got to his feet and walked over to his own grey horse.

          "I've told you, there's no point in calling me that.  I'm no longer royal." He said, adjusting the grey's bridle. "And I never meant that you couldn't ride well. I wouldn't insult you like that.  I was merely concerned for your injury, but you look like it's fine."

          Marth picked up one of the two bundles and swung himself up onto the back of the horse that he had dubbed "Cloud" and looked over at Roy.

          Roy shook his head to clear it, waking up a bit more.  He had reverted back to General-speech, as if he were talking to one of his own men.  But this was not a battle like the one last winter.  He was here with his exiled Prince in a forest loacated somewhere very far away from the castle with very little supplies.  The teen grabbed the other bundle and hoisted himself up onto the mare's back.

          "I apologize.  I'm not comfortable with calling you by your first name," Roy muttered grouchily, pressing his horse forward, closer to Marth's.

          Marth shrugged and urged Cloud through the trees.

          "It doesn't matter what you desire to address me as, but a royal title is pointless and dangerous.  People may hear and get suspicious."

          The trees broke abruptly and they emerged into the great, grassy field that Marth had traveled through the day before.  The blue-haired young man halted his horse as he realized something that he had previously forgotten about.  He turned to Roy's questioning gaze and motioned to his neck.

          "Collars."

          He said only that one word before turning his horse and setting off at a canter towards the village.

          Roy followed right behind the big grey, seeing as Marth knew the way to the village.  He had forgotten about the rich metal bound around his neck in all the time that they had been free.

          The two young men reached the small village and Roy pulled up alongside Marth.  He looked around the sparely populated area and smelt the odor of steaming metal.  

          "Over there…" He said quietly, pointing to the blacksmith's shop.

          The blue haired man nodded and dismounted, walking into the small shop.  Roy followed at a slower pace and saw the blacksmith, hard at work over the fire.

          Sweat dripped down the middle-aged man's face as he labored over the makings of a sword.  He was black and silver-haired and his dark brown eyes flicked over to the two travelers in his doorway.  He dipped the sword in a tub of water, and watched it hiss and steam before setting it down.  He approached them, taking off his gloves.

          "May I help you two?"

          Marth looked at the man evenly and the smith started inwardly.  Two pairs of identical blue eyes were looking at him from the faces of the man and the boy.  The man's were cold and hard, more so than any statue.  The boy's were wild and flashing, as burning as the fire in his forge.  But the smith was a clever man and he knew better than to reveal his surprise.

          "We need to get these removed," Marth pulled down the collar to reveal the sapphire-studded collar around his throat. "And we're willing to pay to ensure your silence."

          The smith studied them.  Could they be escaped prisoners?  No, with collars and faces like that, they were more likely runaway pleasure slaves.  It didn't matter either way- they didn't look like people he cared to fool with.

          "Certainly.  Right this way," he led them into his forge.

          Marth and Roy followed behind the smith to the rear of the building.  He paused to select a few tools and led them to the anvil where he crafted his wares.

          "You first," he said, turning to Marth.

          Wordlessly, the ex-Prince nodded and removed his shirt and armor.  He walked over and placed his head on the anvil.  The heat from the fire and apprehension made beads of sweat form on his brow.  As the smith raised his hammer, he closed his eyes and prayed to every god he knew.

          After the first nerve-shattering blow, the procedure wasn't so bad. There was an ear-splitting shriek of metal against metal as the collar was filed to allow it to be removed.  Finally, there was a clatter as the collar slipped off and fell to the floor.  Marth straightened up, fixing the icy mask in place before Roy or the smith could see his combined anxiety and relief.  

          The smith bent down and picked up the collar.

          "Shall I dispose of this?" He asked, thinking of the high price the jewels would fetch at a market.  Marth took it from him.

          "No, I'll keep it.  To help me remember.  Here," he handed the smith some coins out of his bundle and walked out.  

          Marth walked out into the cold over to where the horses were tied.  There was something about the heat of the forge that made him feel like he was being squeezed and that he couldn't breathe.  Being out in the cold of the approaching winter brought welcome relief to his lungs and skin.  He closed his eyes and let the cold embrace him.

          Roy watched Marth leave for a moment, then turned back to the fire.  A tremor ran through his body and he struggled to keep the smith from noticing the shiver.  After a gesture from the man, he knelt down, removed his shirt and placed his head on the anvil exactly as the ex-Prince had.

          The heat from the intense fire was overwhelming, yet it did not bring sweat from his body.  It was soothing and the feeling it brought was so deep that it almost distracted him from the force of the blacksmith's hammer on the collar.  Soon, it fell away and he lay there moments after, basking in the heat with his eyes half-closed.  

          "…Sir?" Came the deep voice hesitantly. "Are you alright?"

          Roy jumped awake, changing his position so that he kneeled on the floor, catching his breath and breaking away from the daze.  He shook his head and stood,

          "Fine," the teen answered curtly. "And you can keep the damn collar."

          The man could only watch, slightly confused as the auburn-haired teen walked stiffly out of his shop.  

TBC…

Vallen: *glares at Xan* You typed too much! Now you're spoiling them! *laughs nervously* Eh… I'm sure you guys don't mind…    

Xan:  *sticks her tongue out at Vallen* Haven't you ever heard of the phrase "Give the people what they want"?  Of COURSE they don't mind!  They love it!  Bwahaha!  Of course, this means we can't post another one for a while, but that's the way the cookie crumbles, isn't it?  


	10. Storm

"Fubuki no Kaen" 

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes: Vallen: *looks at ff.net* It looks like the good old site will be making a lot of changes, and we are grateful that they do not affect us… Whew. We apologize for taking so long to get this out- Blame me, it's all my fault- but we thank you for all the great feedback. And now for a special Adventure Chapter of… Fubuki no Kaen!

Xan: *does dance* We have over 100 reviews! Go us! Sorry again for the delay!

Thanks to all you wonderful people who took the time to give us feedback! We're sorry we didn't have time to respond to all your reviews this time around, but if you have a specific question, e-mail us at our new e-mail: xan_vallen@cliffhanger.com… Don't you love it?

Biting cold nipped at his chest before he put his shirt back on. The former general went to the side of his mare and buried his face in her mane for a moment, reveling in the warmth. He pulled away reluctantly to mount the unnamed black horse.

          "Can we get going?" the teen asked loudly, his voice reaching Marth's ears.

          Marth opened his eyes, awakened from his icy spell. The ex-prince nodded and walked over to where the horses were. He pulled on his shirt and slipped the broken collar into his bag, then swung himself up onto Cloud.

          "Any ideas on where to go?" He asked Roy.

          "No. I have no clue as to where we are, so I have no way to determine a direction that we should head in. Don't ask me," he replied, fingering the reins tensely. With an angry shake of his head, the ex-general's heels pressed into the sides of the black horse, urging her to go as fast as she could in the opposite direction that they had come.

          Following the boy-general, Marth kept Cloud a few strides behind Roy's horse. He preferred to let him alone while he was in a mood like this. They galloped for quite a while before finally stopping by a small stream. As the horses drank, Marth turned to Roy.

          "Are you better now?"

          The teen scowled darkly and knelt down carefully beside the mare. He dipped his hands into the freezing water for a moment, and then ran them through his hair, attempting to tame the wind-blown mop.

          "I'm not one to complain, but how would you be if you were freezing cold, your leg hurt like hell, and lost somewhere in the wilderness of Altea?" His voice was all sarcasm. "Oh, I forgot. _You_ don't get cold easily…" he spat.

          Marth looked down and started braiding his horse's mane absently.

          "No, I never get bothered by the cold, but I can't stand heat. We are _both_ lost here, though no fault of our own."

          All of the sudden, Marth stiffened, looking past Roy with his icy gaze. Roy followed his line of sight until he saw what the ex-prince was looking at.

          A group of people were standing a ways away from them, five ragged looking men and a woman. All of them had swords and the woman was wearing body armor. Marth's hand rested instinctively on the hilt of his sword.

          The woman leered at them. She had long blond hair that had been braided into many small plaits.

          "Why hello," she said, eying the two of them. "Jatana the Scarred, leader of the Rosescar band. Who might you two pretty little trespassers be?"

          Upon closer inspection, Marth saw that Jatana had a long scar that started on her left cheek and went across the bridge of her nose to end on the other cheek.

          Roy drew his sword and held it before him, ready and waiting for anything. His eyes narrowed deeply at the offending woman, analyzing her in his mind.

          "Trespassers? I was aware that this wild land belonged to no one but the Kingdom of Altea," he growled. "I believe I've had trouble with your like before."

          It was true that the Altea military had always had many problems with the numerous groups of bandits running around the land. The teen recalled an earlier episode with he had been summoned to stop the fighting between a village and a bloodthirsty bandit group. But that hadn't been the first or the last time.

          Marth dismounted and slid Falcion out of its sheath. He would never start a fight, but he would not hesitate to defend himself and defeat whoever was foolish enough to challenge him.

          Jatana regarded the two of them through analytical black eyes. Outwardly, the two of them didn't look like much, but she had encountered pretty boys who could fight as well as any tough-looking mercenary.

          "Oh, but this ain't the Kingdom of Altea anymore, kid. This is _my_ kingdom. We don't take no orders from no pretty-boy traitor prince."

          Marth felt icy anger freeze and tighten his insides. So Gaimen had already spread his filthy rumors all the way to the Outlands.

          "And if you've dealt with us before, then maybe you were with that pitiful Altea army," she continued. "Although you don't look big enough to _hold_ a sword, much less use one." The bandit chieftainess leered at Roy.

          The ex-general uttered a low growl, shaking visibly with anger. He shifted his weight and stepped forward with his good leg, ready to advance.

          "That's it…" Roy snarled, tightening his grip on the sword. Nobody insulted him like that and got away with it. "Why don't we find out?"

          Jatana's lip curled. "Sure. Let's see how long you two last against me. Han, Kole, back me up in case this gets ugly, which I doubt."

          Two of the scruffy-looking men nodded. Jatana drew her sword, a long double-edged weapon.

          Marth glanced over at Roy and caught the boy-general's eye. Jatana may be as good a warrior as she claimed to be, cut there was no way she would be able to stand against the both of them together. Even when injured, Roy was a great force on the battlefield, soldiers were trained to keep on fighting despite the pain.

          Jatana struck first, hard and fast. Marth whirled gracefully out of the way of the attack.

          Roy jumped into the fight and met the bandleader's sword head-on. The two swords made loud metal-wrenching sounds as they fought a battle of strength. The teen gritted his teeth and pressed harder, preparing for the moment when they would break away. He met her eyes carefully, looking for signs of struggle or weakness. He saw none.

          _'I _am_ stronger!'_

They broke away and their swords clashed together once again in a storm of skilled moves. Unknowingly, the two fighters switched offensive and defensive places, in turn, for they both couldn't stay in one position for long.

          Suddenly they both struck each other's bodies and stepped back to recover. Jatana looked down to the origin of her pain: A small cut in her side, deep enough to break through her body armor. Blood stained her rugged clothing. She shook it off and concentrated on her opponent. 

          The ex-general had his hand over a long, superficial gash right below his collarbone. Behind his eyes, a plan was forming and he clenched his frozen fingers over his sword hilt even tighter.

          "Highness," he hissed softly, unable to call the ex-prince by his own name once again. He then motioned to the chieftainess, a gesture he was sure that Marth could not misunderstand.

          The blue-haired man nodded and stood opposite Jatana, sword raised. His cold blue eyes were fixed on her injured side. Abruptly, he struck.

          Unlike Roy's, Marth's fighting style was subtle: He used several maneuvers that made Jatana think that he was going to do one thing, but instead did another. The bandit leader managed to scratch a fairly deep wound in his leg. Marth grimaced, but with one final thrust, he drove his sword deep into Jatana's throat. She made a gagging noise and fell to the ground, blood dribbling from her lips and gushing from her throat.

          Marth took a step back and glared at the rest of the group of bandits. The stared at him like frightened deer before turning tail and running as fast as they could.

          "Such fragile bonds of loyalty," Marth murmured, sitting heavily on the ground. 

          There was the sound of a person limping over to him- Roy. The teen shivered, lips slightly tinged blue, and looked up at the sky.

          "_Damnit_. I could care less about those bastards' loyalty now… It's starting to snow, we have to do something now!"

          The blue-haired ex-prince looked up as well. Grey clouds full of snow hung in the sky over them. He hadn't noticed them or the growing cold. Standing up, he sheathed his sword after cleaning the blood off and limped over to Cloud. "We've got to find shelter for us and the horses and treat our wounds."

          He tried to mount his horse and found that his injured leg was quivering and bleeding badly.

          "Shit," he hissed though his teeth. The exiled prince bit his tongue so hard that he tasted blood and heaved himself up into the saddle.

          "Wounds? What wounds…?" Roy questioned, and looked down, realizing the slight injury he had suffered. He shook his head and slowly made his way over to the black mare. "I can barely feel my body… I'm so numb and cold."

          The ex-general mounted his horse and maneuvered it over to Marth. He pulled his clothes tighter around his body, as if it would help, and looked to his former prince.

          "Are you able to function well enough?" In any other words and spoken by someone else, that question would probably be the same as _Are you okay? _But Roy would never say that, would he?

          "My leg is wounded and I can't move it," Marth said softly, taking up the reins. "But the important thing now is finding shelter before this storm breaks."

          The royal didn't know _how_ he knew but something told him that unless they found a place to escape from the bitter cold and raging winds that the blizzard would bring, Roy probably would not survive. As tough as the general was, this storm was a killer and his sensitivity to the cold was an added disadvantage.

          If Marth had any worries considering his _own_ survival in the cold, he either didn't realize it or acknowledge them. The only things on his mind were his injured leg and finding shelter.

          "Suck it up and join the club," Roy retorted. "My leg's been killing me and you don't see me complaining about it." With that, he pulled himself up into the saddle with a grunt.

          The black mare pranced around uncomfortably for a few moments, finding her footing in the new snow. She snorted loudly and tossed her head and mane, moving forward.

          "I say we move on and try to find this supposed shelter you speak of…" Despite the strength in the teen's voice, he was visibly shaking in reaction to the weather.

          Marth didn't heed Roy's hard words… Much. Instead, he turned Cloud and looked the way the bandits had run off.

          "They've got to have someplace to go," he mused then turned to Roy. "You've done this before, what do you suggest?"

          Big wet flakes started falling slowly from the grey sky. They both looked up at them anxiously.

          "Well?"

          "I had a _map_ before, so I'll just have to pick and choose the directions…" Roy mused and urged his horse forward into a fast canter, analyzing the paths and searching his memory for something familiar.

          They rode like that for a long time, realizing that they were right in the middle of a huge forestland and there was nothing within miles. But still, the prospect of the bandit's place to go home to lead them on further.

           Roy's horse drew in deep, fast breaths in an effort to take as much oxygen from the cold, stiff air as possible. Her coat was covered in white snow, some of the black hair showing through. The rider suddenly grew limp, slumping over the black mare's neck. She stopped abruptly, aware of the uncomfortable weight on that area.

          Marth noticed Roy's motionless body and felt fear tighten into a lump in his throat.

          "Roy!" He shouted, breaking his usual cold silence. When the general didn't answer, Marth jumped from the grey's back into the waist-deep snow. He waded over to the prancing black mare, leading Cloud behind him. Upon finally reaching him, the prince turned him over to find that Roy had gone into shock and that his lips and nostrils were an alarming shade of blue-purple. His breathing was shallow.

          Marth's eyes narrowed with worry.

          "Icefires!" he swore, yanking off his shirt, not feeling the icy blade of winter cut into him. He pulled it over Roy's own in an attempt to help him stay warm. The exiled royal picked up the auburn-haired boy in his arms and waded back over to Cloud, placing Roy in his saddle and then went back for the mare.

          Once he had tied her to his own horse, Marth climbed back into his saddle behind Roy. The young former general was propped up against Marth's body and his head was leaning against the Prince's bare chest. Wrapping his arms around Roy, Marth took up the reins and dug his heels into Cloud's sides. The stallion squealed and jumped forward, floundering a little in the deep snow. Lines of worry creased the ex-prince's brow- if he didn't find shelter and soon, Roy was going to freeze. Oddly enough, despite the fact that he was shirtless in the middle of a snowstorm, Marth felt nothing at all except for Roy's body against his.

          They had been moving only for a few minutes when the storm became abruptly worse. The wind turned each snowflake into a tiny blade, stinging and blinding Marth. He couldn't see where he was going. As sheet after sheet of blinding snow was hurled at him, Marth's fear worsened.

          "Stop!" He shouted to the storm. "I-I _command_ you to stop!!"

          The sheer absurdity of his words almost made Marth want to laugh, but could it be… No, it was impossible, but it seemed that the tempest had actually abated a tiny bit.

          "I-_command-_you-to-stop," He concentrated on each word as he spoke it. Sweat trickled down Marth's bare back from exertion in spite of the cold. And yet impossible as it was, the blizzard's rage lessened and he could see clearly enough to discern… a cave right in front of them? Math blinked. Either he was hallucinating or the gods had decided to bless them with luck.

          Not waiting around to see which it was, the ex-prince curled an arm around Roy and urged his horse towards the cavernous entrance. The instant they were safely inside, the blizzard unleashed its full fury on the world outside.

          Marth dismounted, holding Roy in his arms, looking around the cave. It was plenty large enough to hold them and the horses. To his mild surprise, there was hay and firewood stacked along one wall- apparently, this was one of the bandits' hideouts. He set Roy gently on the ground, thankful that it was much warmer inside the cave. Then the blue-haired man led the two horses to the back of the cave and hobbled them. He also set out some well-earned hay for them. Then, working rapidly, he made a fire and pulled Roy over to it. He noticed that the boy-general's hands were cold as ice. He used his warm breath and hands to try to her the circulation moving.

          Exhaustion crept up on Marth and his eyes drooped from wont of rest. He finally fell asleep curled around Roy to warm him.

TBC…

Vallen: *cheers* Wow, I finally got off my lazy ass to do this for you guys! *bows, while having tomatoes and cabbage thrown at her* Eh… Heh… Well, what did you guys think of that one? It certainly got interesting, don't you think? Oh, and I'll add Xan's end note later since she forgot to do one this time… But you can bet that she says the same as me!  


	11. Trapped

"Fubuki no Kaen" 

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes: Vallen: One announcement: We now have a yahoo group for Xan and I, so please join! Just think… You get to know when the chapters come out right when they do! http://groups.yahoo.com/xan-vallen

Xan: Xan:  Hello again!  Since there was such a long delay last time, we worked hard on getting this chapter out quickly.  I hope y'all enjoy it!!

Thanks to: vv (Wow, I looked at your pic that you posted the URL for on the review and it was awesome! Do you take commissions?), LiL PriNCeSs Me (You'll get to know where it leads to soon enough!), shea (Heh-heh… Pointless rampages are good, but yes, please warn us if you're going to get in one because we might get hurt! *runs away*), Chibi Fairy (*feels happy* Yay, we're on another person's favorite's list! *pokes Xan*), Hellbound Angel (Xan really loved your "MARTH IS INSANE" comment… *cheers* Yes, drama! That's what we were going for!), Pichu*Star (Oh… Hmm… This fic MIGHT (and I STRESS the "might") tie off at right around 20 chapters or so… We have a long way to go. Oh, and if you guys are still interested, we have a fun sequel planned!), Kendrilian (Thanks so much for noticing the typo! I'll get around to fixing it soon… I just have to find the disk that that chapter was on… We're glad you think our story is cool!), Snowangel: Goddess of Wolves (It seems I have found a yaoi fangirl, mm? Well, there will be more yaoi-ness, just not right now… But believe me, this is torturing me too… -_-), Kanashimi Ame (Yes, we finally did write and we apologize for the gap last time! *bows*), tikimoof (well, we don't need fire, but Roy-chan does…), Spectrum (*falls over* Ahh… Yes… Two months is too long… We were bad! Thanks for the great review! We love praise!), Shylock (You shall have more! And yes, bishounenness SHOULD be a word for us fangirls.), and YoshiMars (*sweatdrop* You check daily?? *feels bad* Well, did you join the yahoo group? You can have Marth and Roy-ness every day there! We have fanart from wonderful artists… *drool*)

Was it a dream? Had the wrath of the ice storm killed him after all? A low moan passed Roy's lips as he stirred. His whole body felt feverish and he was shivering yet sweating at the same time. Finally he became aware of a strange weight upon him. The boy-general opened his eyes slowly and saw an arm draped over his chest. Startled, he jumped and pushed away from the person, but was rewarded with a wave of dizziness from the sudden movement.

          _'This _is_ a dream…'_ he thought as his blurry vision was greeting with the sight of a sleeping, shirtless Marth. _'Why the hell did he help me? He should have just left me there- I was a weakness to our mission…'_

The teen reached out a wavering hand and touched Marth's shoulder, shaking gently.

          "Highness…" he choked out, his voice a hoarse whisper.

          Marth's eyes fluttered open and he looked around at his surroundings, finding Roy.

          "A-Are you alright?" The blue-haired man asked, concerned. He tried to sit up, but found that he was still too weak.

          "Don't… know…" Roy answered with a body-wracking shiver. "Can't… stop shaking. What a-about you?" Sweat dripped down the teen's face and he made an attempt to wipe it off. "You should have l-left me there. Now I'll be even more trouble for you."

          "I'll be fine in a little while," Marth answered, noticing Roy's violent shivers. He pushed himself up onto his elbow and stoked the fire with a long stick. Once it was roaring again, he pulled Roy over closer to it. Hesitantly, he wiped the sweat from Roy's brow and moved away from him.

          "I couldn't leave you… Not after everything we've been through. And… I just couldn't…" Marth said quietly, looking down at the ground.

          Roy's eyes closed and he basked in the heat, wrapping his arms around himself and lying back down.

          "So you're telling me that you care whether I live or die because of all the things we've been through together…?" he asked drowsily. "So we're… Friends or something?"

          The ex-prince moved away from the fire's heat, but remained close enough to help Roy if he needed to.

          "Yes, I think friends sounds right." He answered softly. "You should get more rest- we need to talk later."

          "No, no, no… we can talk now. I'm not that tired…" Roy protested, forcing his eyes open. He did need the rest, but the teen was too curious as to what they would talk about.

          Marth knew that Roy needed to sleep, but he also knew that it was no use to try to force him to rest- Once the boy-general's mind was made up, it was impossible to get him to change it.

          "Are you warm enough?" he asked, feeling that if he couldn't get Roy to sleep, he could at least keep him warm.

          "Mmm-Hmm…" the auburn-haired teen answered, keeping his feverish shivered down to a minimum while he was next to the fire. "Don't you want to get next to it? Its very warm and nice…" He almost-purred sleepily.

            Marth shivered, although it was certainly not because he was cold.

          "No, thank you. I prefer the cold. The fire is all for you." He paused and steeled himself for what he was about to say. "I think I have magical powers."

          The teen let out a dry, hoarse laugh, his sides shaking visibly. He turned over and gave Marth a "what-the-hell" look.

          "Oh, that's a good one, Highness… Heh… A _real_ good one… So you're saying that we survived that storm because of your supposed "magical powers" and expect me to believe it?"

          The outburst of laughter had clearly helped Roy to wake up quite a bit, his eyes more clear and focused. He analyzed Marth with them, as he had done many times before, and stared into the ex-prince's own.

          Marth looked right back into Roy's eyes, deadly serious.

          "You twist my words, but yes. I'm not completely sure, but I'm fairly confident that I have _some_ sort of power." He looked over at Roy's skeptical face. "I know it sounds crazy, but I'm serious.

          The blue-haired man crawled over to the entrance of the cave where the blizzard was still raging outside. He stretched out a hand towards the storm.

          "Come… Come on…" He whispered, concentrating on it. "Listen to me… I command you…"

          A blast of cold air and snow hurtled into the cave, summoned by Marth. It sped towards the fire, determined to put it out.

          Marth's eyes widened and he cried out in alarm. If the fire went out, then it meant disaster for both of them.

          Using every bit of strength that he could wrest from his already exhausted and battered body, the exiled Prince hauled the gust of icy wind and snow away from Roy and the fire, pulling it towards him. It formed into a small sphere of swirling snow into his hands. He threw it away before slumping to the ground, knocked out by sheer exhaustion.

          Roy stared in shock at the sight before him, trembling slightly. He moved over to the Prince as fast as he could and shook him wildly.

          "Highness! Wake up- What happened to you?!" he shouted, trying to reach the unconscious Marth. But his words did not- It was like talking to the dead.

          He grabbed hold of Marth and pulled him over towards the fire and away from the opening the best he could.

          _'What the hell _was_ that?'_

Marth's face was pale and his breathing was shallow as Roy dragged him over to the fire. He had used too much of his newly unleashed power and had, in doing so, depleted the last of his energy. With some rest, he would be just fine. Roy glanced at him one last time before curling up and going to sleep himself.

          The teen woke up again late that next morning. The storm had obviously raged on all night and now the wretched snow was falling thick and hard, but not with the intensity it had before. A bit of the sun peeked out from behind the thick grey clouds, but gave no warmth. Winter had just settled in for the long haul.

          Roy sat up slowly and looked around. Only his bodily shivering hindered his movements, but otherwise he had put all his other pain aide. He raised a pale hand to brush his messy hair out of the way and push back his headband a little so he could see.

          "Shit…" he muttered. From his viewpoint, things did not look good. By the looks of it, they were practically snowed into a cold cave with minimal warmth.  And also, he couldn't forget that his exiled prince was lying unconscious on the ground. Then there was that strange magical powers issue…

          He cursed colorfully again and stood up, beginning to pace. Every so often he would glance at Marth, but his attention was mostly focused on the situation. 

          Finally the teenage general grew weary of the merely walking about and drew his sword. Roy slashed artfully at an unseen imaginary enemy, trying to work out all his frustration and keep warm. But still his hands shook with the effort to hold his sword properly against his body's reaction to the cold.

          "You're right…"

          Marth's flat voice came from where he was lying. His eyes were closed and his hands were clenched tightly at his sides. Slowly, he relaxed them.

          "You're right. We've got to get out of here.

          The prince-in-exile sat up slowly, his entire body as sore as if he had been stomped on by an entire herd of wild horses. But he didn't let that stop him as he lurched to his feet, his usually graceful motions awkward and jerky. Finally Marth attainted a standing position. He leaned unsteadily on the wall of the cave and looked at Roy.

          "I think… that I could control the blizzard long enough for us to get out of these woods, but I would be weak after. I would need you to protect me until I regain my strength." He lowered his eyes to the floor. "If you're unwilling to do that, I understand."

          The auburn-haired teen stared at the semi-blocked entrance, thinking quickly. He had ceased his swordplay and now let his sword linger at his side.

          "Acceptable. Why would you think that I would refuse? It is my duty to protect royalty… Above anything, I am a soldier, Highness," he replied.

          _'Only I'm usually not so stony… At least this way I can help him without having to reveal anything. Although I don't know what I would be revealing… We've been through hell together, and doesn't that change a person? Oh hell, maybe I _am_ better off alone…'_ The young general thought to himself, still not facing Marth.

          "I had hoped that we were on friendlier terms than former royal to former general, but if that is what you prefer, general, then I shall comply." Marth walked over to where the horses were hobbled and checked them over. "The horses seem to be fine. When would you like me to do this? I could do it now, but it would probably be best if we waited a little while."

          "I would prefer soon. It's already late in the morning and I don't want to do this when it gets colder later in the afternoon," Roy answered, going to the black mare. He pressed his cold face against her neck, closing his eyes appreciatively. The horses generated more body heat than humans because of their size and mass. He completely ignored Marth's first comment and hoped that they wouldn't come across that subject again anytime soon. He felt uncomfortable talking to the ex-prince as friends, but maybe deep down inside, wished that they were.

          "As you wish."

          Marth patted Cloud's neck once before swinging himself up onto the stallion's back. He had taken off Clouds hobbles a moment ago and walked him over to the entrance of the cave.

          "You'll have to lead us out of here," Marth said with his back to the general. "I'll be concentrating too hard on the snow to control him."

          The ex-prince closed his eyes and raised his hands to the snow.

          _'Well, at least this means he believes that I do have powers.'_

"Listen to me," Marth said to the blizzard. "I command you to listen to me."

          He began to glow eerily, the color alternating from ice blue to royal blue and his blue eyes blazed.

          "Stop."

          Abruptly, the blizzard _did_ stop. The snow halted and the wind died. Everything was deadly still.

          "Go!" Marth cried to Roy, voice full of pain and the effort of holding the storm. "Go now!"

          The ex-general led his horse into a full gallop once he heard the urgency in the blue-haired man's voice. The mare's legs were pounding on the earth through the snow, faster and faster every minute and Roy felt as if he was flying. He rode without looking around at his standstill surroundings for as long and hard as he could.

          When the horse tired, she slowed down almost immediately after Roy signaled that she could. They were out of the forest- the teen patted her neck and walked her around to cool down.

          The land there were in now was flat and hilly at the same time, like the plains. Roy could see more of the sun now and it was a relief. He rubbed his sleeves against his frozen face to try and warm it. Then he looked back- Was Marth behind him?

          After a few minutes, Marth's grey stallion pounded out of the forest. An unconscious Marth was slumped against the frightened horse's neck. Cloud pranced nervously, unused to Marth's limp weight. The ex-prince's hands were wrapped in the stallion's mane and a faint blue glow still surrounded him. The glow faded and the snow began to fall once again, only slowly and gently. Marth slipped off Cloud's back and landed face down on the ground.

          Roy sighed and got off his horse. He hoisted Marth onto his back, grabbing the ex-prince's arms. With a grunt, he pushed the limp body up onto the stallion and, before Marth could fall off again, jumped on behind him. The teen held Marth on the horse, but blinked, then groaned in frustration.

          "Damn you being so tall… Now I can't see…" he mumbled, half-growling. Mentally cursing, the auburn-haired teen dismounted and got on the horse again, this time in front.

          "Much better…" he muttered under his breath, and grabbed the reins with one hand. Roy let Marth fall forward so that he rested on his back and steadied him with the other hands, positioning the ex-prince's arms around his shoulders.

          _'This should work.'_

          He had the horse trot over to his own mare and Roy grabbed those reins as well. Together the two horses cantered side by side, the larger carrying two riders off into the day.

TBC…

Vallen: *cheers* Another one done! Anyways, I hope that one didn't take too long for you guys! Oh, and if you're wondering about the magic thing, the next chapter just gets more interesting…

Xan:  I think this is one of my favorite chapters.  Just 'cause of all the conflict.  And it also contains one of my favorite parts in the entire fic insofar:  "'This is a dream…' he thought as his blurry vision was greeting with the sight of a sleeping, shirtless Marth."  I just get such a kick out of that line.  I hope you liked it!  Hopefully, we can get the next chapter out quickly too.  Ja!


	12. Stranger

"Fubuki no Kaen" 

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes: Vallen:*wipes the sweat off her forehead* Oy… So much typing when my hands are frozen! Anyways, enjoy! 

          Xan: (didn't get her act together soon enough to comment)

          Don't forget to join: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/xan-vallen!!

Thanks to: Li Kayun (yes, being "friends" is good, but Roy's being a brat.), Shea (You mean we're BOTH wonderful writers, right? I'd be disappointed if only one of us got the compliment!), YoshiMars (*growls* the evil scanner conspiracy is at foot… Get it fixed! We love fanart!), royal pain (Every word? *cheers* Go Roy fans! I luv you!), Asudem (I'm hoping for a little more than friends, but what can I do? I am helpless in the situation! *groans* Except not…), Spectrum (*bows* Yes, quick chapters are gifts from the gods, eh? I should know, I'm an avid fanfic reader myself. Oh, and yes, I quite enjoyed the role-reversal myself! Thanks for noticing!), Zel The Stampede (I like your sn… heh. Oh, and we like e-mail, so go ahead if you want!), Sinnatious (*uses suspense as  a deadly weapon* We love writing the contrasts and we'll be sure to post more and more… I don't think we'll get writer's cube anytime soon.), kyuusei (The yahoo group is our site from talking about Marth and Roy stuff, fanart, and whatnot! It's fun! I'm glad you like the magic.), Pichu*Star (*mysterious face* I am afraid that I cannot disclose information of that type to the public… Just hang on and wait! It's a fun ride- believe me!), Klar (We LOVE gift art… F.no.K seem like an anime in itself? ^__^ Thanks for the enthusiastic review) and Lil Princess Me (*plugs ears momentarily* Well, if you're not a big fan of yaoi, you'll have to wait for the next few chapters, because there will definitely be some there… *chuckles*) 

Prince, no, _King_ Gaimen of Altea paced around his vast and richly ornamented chambers.

          Still powerful even in middle age, Gaimen had the tall, hard body of a warrior. His face, though it had seen many battles, still attracted a fair share of the court ladies. Although his tastes ran in another direction, he often enjoyed their favors.

          _'Hm… I wonder where my young nephew and that bratty general are now? Hopefully lying dead on the banks of a river somewhere or in the bellies of wolves. Still,'_ he paused and glanced at the portrait of Marth that he kept to remember the prince by. _'It was such a pity to let such beauties slip out of my grasp. They were too dangerous, though. There are plenty of people I could have who aren't desperate to kill me. But still…The look in Marth's eyes when I declared him in exile… He was as beautiful as an ice sculpture- no, more…'_

          A shiver filled Gaimen at the thought of his hands on Marth's soft skin. And that boy-General's as well. Younger than Marth, but just as beautiful, Roy was yet another jewel slipped through his fingers.

          "Oh well," the new King said aloud. "Two boys aren't worth all the power that I now possess. The Kingdom of Altea is _mine_!"

          Roy rode for a day, and when it became night, he slowed down, trying to convince himself that he had more energy. His passenger was unresponsive, as he had been all day, and the boy supported his limp weight.

          All of a sudden, a small cabin came into view. It was covered in snow and forest brush, but Roy's sharp eyes caught it. He hastened the pace and reached the cabin, dismounting carefully and leaving Marth upon the horse. His legs shook and he walked weakly in the snow, but made his way to the front door.

          Roy knocked on the heavy, wooden door once, twice, and a third time before he heard a voice…

          "Go away." It was the voice on a mature, perhaps old, man, sounding fairly gruff and annoyed.

          The auburn-haired boy groaned softly in frustration and bit his already-cracked lip, unknowingly making it bleed. The cold had affected him more than he had noticed, his hair covered in ice (some strands frozen) and his skin dry and cracking.

          "My… companion and I mean you no harm and I'm not quite sure what's wrong with him, but he's very weak and hasn't been conscious all day. If anything, please help him," Roy tried explaining the situation to see if it would help, but he got no answer from behind the door.

          At least fifteen minutes passed before the door opened a crack. Eyes from within took in the sight on his doorstep: A frozen boy supporting another unconscious man only a few years older. The boy-teen heard the door open and looked up in surprise.

          "If you're going to come in, hurry up," the gruff voice said.

          Roy blinked in surprise and scrambled to his feet shakily, pulling Marth with him. The door opened further to give way to the darkness inside. Once he had gotten them both inside, he looked around the pitch-black for the owner of the voice.

          "Is anyone there?"

          The auburn-haired teen tightened his grip on Marth and locked his knees so that the two of them would not fall over. Just as his eyes began to adjust, a small oil lamp was lit, exposing a tall figure right in front of him.

          The man was dressed in long, warm-looking deep green and black robes. He had long, slightly graying brown hair with several small braids woven into it in random places. Bright amethyst eyes regarded them carefully, and Roy could feel a sort of power probing at his body as those eyes examined him.

          "Give me the blue-haired one," he demanded in that voice.

          That made Roy hold on tighter to Marth, but he did not stand down.

          "What will you do with him?"

          The man's eyes flashed.

          "Listen, you either give him to me or you don't. It's your decision whether he survives or not."

          Reluctantly, Roy shifted his burden's weight and handed him to the man, who took Marth as if he weighed nothing.

          "Take care of your horses."

          The former general stared at him in surprise, but gathered his strength and stalked off outside once again. Despite the clothes he was wearing, the cold bit through his skin and tortured his bones. He took hold of both the horses' reins and led them around the cabin, finding a shelter/station of some sorts, shielded from the elements. The teen tiredly un-tacked them and put blankets on the back, ones he had found in the tack box. After feeding them, he sank down to the hay-covered ground, shivering, and fell asleep.   

          The purple-eyed man carried Marth to a small couch in a main room and brushed a hand across the young man's forehead. He pulled out a small bag of medicines and waved an item with a strong-smelling odor under the ex-prince's nose.

          "So you were the one who was messing with my storm."

          Marth's eyes opened slowly. His vision was clouded, but cleared after he blinked. He found that he was in an unfamiliar place, being cared for by unfamiliar hands.

          _'Where am I? Where's Roy'_ were his first thoughts. Then he realized that the strange, deep, gruff voice had been addressing him.

          "E-excuse me?" Marth asked.

          "I said that it was you who was tampering with my blizzard."

          Marth could now clearly see the speaker. He could _feel_ him too in a strange way, a way he had never know he _could_ feel things. It was as if he was using a newly awakened sixth sense for the first time.

           "Where's Roy?" the ex-prince asked, his head much clearer. The man looked at him with those amethyst eyes.

          "He's fallen asleep in my stable. Wait here and I'll get him. You're too weak to move."

          Marth nodded and relaxed.

          The middle-aged hermit left and went outside to get Roy as promised. He prodded the teen with his boot.

          "Wake up. Your friend is conscious now and I'm willing to bet that you want to see him," he announced once Roy had opened his eyes and sat up.

          The ex-general blinked rapidly to clear his eyes of the fatigue and succeeded a tiny bit. He scrambled to his feet, still shivering violently, and ran ahead of the strange man back into the house. When he saw Marth, the internal knot of worries faded, but he showed no external change. Roy knelt on the floor beside the small couch,

          "Are you alright now?

          The man had entered the cabin again, quietly and smoothly like a shadow.

          "Once you're done getting re-acquainted, you have a lot of explaining to do."

          Marth tried to sit up, but a rolling wave of nausea washed over him and he lay back down.

          "I'm fine," he said softly. "Are _you_ alright? You look like you're freezing."

          Roy nodded curtly, clenching his teeth to fight the shivers.

          "I am," he replied. "A whole day of riding, supporting you, in _that_ weather… It wasn't exactly a piece of cake."

          The teen gave Marth a small glare, then glanced up at the green-clothed man warily.

          Marth sighed inwardly. Roy had been nearly civil to him for a moment. Oh well, he knew it wouldn't last.

          The hermit looked at them both through his piercing purple eyes.

          "Now that I've helped you, tell me your names and what you're doing in my wilderness."

          "I'm Marth. We were lost."

          "Roy," the ex-general said shortly.

          "You may call me Rowen… But you two look like you do not belong around here… From the capital, perhaps?" the man known as Rowen questioned. His manner had not changed, but at least he wasn't being hostile.

          Roy stood up to face the hermit, an angry flash in his blue eyes.

          "Look, whatever rumors you might have-"

          "-I hear no rumors. Be quiet," Rowen interrupted sharply, turning back to Marth. "Now perhaps with you, I can have an intelligent conversation."

          The auburn-haired teen looked about ready to protest loudly, but stopped and began to pace to keep warm.

          Marth glanced quickly at Roy, but opted to keep quiet about it.

          "Thank you for sharing warmth and comfort of your home, Rowen." Marth said, not really knowing how to address the older man.

          "Hm. I'll exchange that for some information out of you," Rowen replied. "I have an idea, but you two need to confirm my assumptions… Oh, and a chat about the storm is in order."

          "What would you like to know?" Marth asked. He felt like he could trust this man. "And the storm… I'm sorry that I disrupted it, but I did it to save us. I didn't even know that I could…"

          "It seems that your intentions are pure, so I'll tell you about your magic after you tell me what the ex-prince of Altea is doing in my cabin."

          Roy scowled, sulking in a corner with his arms crossed over his chest in defiance and to help warm himself. He didn't like this "Rowen" guy and didn't know why on earth Marth trusted him.

          A slight blush climbed Marth's cheeks, then vanished.

          "As you know, we've been exiled. We were sold into slavery, tortured, then escaped into the Altean wilds. Thus, here we are."

          Rowen's eyebrows raised a little bit,

          "How colorful. And you're journeying back to the capital, I take it?"

          "At the risk of sounding like a over imaginative bard, yes. To overthrow my evil uncle and reclaim my unlawfully stolen Kingdom."

          The amethyst-eyes man snorted, a hint of a smile on his face.

          "Sounds almost fun. And you're going to do it with just the two of you?"

          Marth nodded, an expression of icy determination on his face.

          "If we have to, then yes."

          "… And it would be more to your advantage if you were stronger, correct?"

          "Yes. Sir, what are you getting at?"

          Rowen's eyes glinted.

          "Have you ever thought about becoming a mage?"

          Roy finally looked up from his corner, surprised with his eyes clearly showing it. What was this old loon saying? Why was Marth so special?

          Marth looked right back into Rowen's eyes.

          "I had never thought that I had possessed the potential, so I never gave in any thought… But now, it's obvious that it's there. So any weapon that I may use in this battle would be much appreciated. Are you willing to teach me?

          "And who said I could teach you?" the hermit replied, a bit surprised at the young man's cleverness.

          "I doubt you'd have brought it up if you didn't have something in mind. You're a crafty sort, Mage. I know you have something in mind."         

          Rowen let out a small laugh.

          "Hm, I guess you've found me out. I am Rowen Wyndburne, Elemental Mage. I specialize in weather, which you might have guessed. Look, I don't like people, which I isolate myself, but if you don't bother me and I don't bother you, I'm willing to teach."

          Marth's spirit rose inwardly at the thought of receiving training in these new powers that he suddenly found himself blessed (or cursed) with. Then he remembered Roy and turned to look at his auburn-haired comrade.

          "Roy? Do you have any objections?"

          The teen scowled darkly, turning his face from the two of them.

          "No," he ground out. "Just do whatever- As long as I get a swing at your uncle."

          The blue-haired man actually smiled at Roy.

          "A swing you shall have. If there's any left of him when I'm done, I shall place him in your hands." He turned back to Rowen. "If you're willing to teach, then I'm willing to learn."

          Roy's face grew even darker than before, bowing his head so that the shadows were cast on it. Of _course_… Marth would go first at fighting Gaimen, not him. It made him angry to be put in second place and he didn't _want_ it to make sense. Marth was the prince and he was just the commoner who was dealt a good hand of Fate's cards.

          "I guess this will be a fun challenge for the both of us, don't you think?" Rowen's gruff voice interrupted his angry thoughts.

          "Yes, I do."

          Once Rowen had left the room to fetch something, Marth's eyes turned to Roy.

          "We can go after my uncle together," He said quietly. "I know he's hurt you just as badly as me."

          "Just stop talking to me, okay?" Roy snapped, shifting his weight anxiously. "Just get that guy to tell me where I can go wait and freeze until you're done with this stupid "mage training" thing."

          Marth fell silent and retreated back into iciness. Had he not been himself, he would have been hurt. Rowen returned and Marth asked him about accommodations for the both of them. The Mage led them to a tiny room off the main cabin and set up two cots in it. Marth walked slowly, unsteadily to the room, refusing help. Once there, he fell onto the bed, still very exhausted. Soon, he was deeply asleep.

          "Tomorrow, then…" Rowen told Marth's sleeping form, turning to Roy, his face changing when he looked upon the teen. "Well, aren't you going to sleep, frozen one?"

          The ex-general stepped forward, his arms still folded across his chest.

          "Not near him," he grumbled.

          The Mage raised an eyebrow, the corner of his mouth quirking slightly.

          "Oh, really? Would you prefer being with me, then?"

          Roy growled and sat down on the second cot reluctantly, his silent answer and declaration of aversion to the Mage.

          "That's what I thought. Farewell till the morning, boy," Rowen continued, then left. He chuckled and whispered to himself: _"Hate is only Love with its back turned."_

_TBC…_

Vallen: Well, that was another medium-sized chapter for you guys. I told you it gets more interesting! Oh, and what do you think of Rowen? Ps… The last line is a quote from one of my favorite fanfics, "Hate is only Love with it's back turned" by sarah-neko (I think she changed her name.)

Xan: (didn't get her act together soon enough to comment)

PS!! Extra note from Vallen: I didn't get Xan to preview this, so please tell me if there are any errors, okay? AND! Xan's birthday is on MONDAY! So please drop her an e-mail at (Xanthos1111@aol.com or xan_vallen@cliffhanger.com) or post a message on the group! Thank you… *bows repeatedly*


	13. Magic

"Fubuki no Kaen" 

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes: Vallen: Thank all you guys for the wonderful "Happy Birthday" wishes to Xan! *hugs all* I think this was another thing that made her birthday better!

Xan: (Evil Vallen was too impatient to put this up that she didn't ask Xan for comments, seeing as she wouldn't get them till much later)

Thanks to: Alex (Uh… The next part comes whenever we get un-lazy. Keep in mind that we're simple high school students… Zzz… *falls asleep in class*), Asudem (^___^ Yay! Wow, that really made me smile. Mmm… Delicious, eh? I'll second that. Oh, and thanks for the comment on Rowen! He'll be around for a while and we want you guys to like him!), tikimoof (Are you still having problems with the site? I hope you fix it soon! Then you won't have to miss chapters!), Spectrum (*dies laughing* Ehehe… Xan and I are big-time Ronin Warriors fans… But we thought that Rowen just suited the character. *keeps a secret smile as to the other comments*), Evil Anime Chick (Thanks!), YoshiMars (*both Xan and I bow* I love that last line too… *sighs dreamily* I want them to get together already!! Damn! We've written up to page 190 in the f.no.k notebook- you're on pg. 128 at the end of this chapter- and they're… Frustrating! Gah! *takes deep breaths* Says me, the rabid yaoi fangirl), Sinnatious (Sweetness! That chapter deserved a "fantastic"? We like that chapter too, lots of good, interesting stuff.), Pichu*Star (Whew! Here's at least one person who doesn't want to overwork us! But then again, it would be our own faults, I guess. Thanks for joining the group!), Miru-muru (*secret smile* Um, that is classified information!), kyuusei (Yeah, well, we had to introduce the bad guy some more, seeing as he is what he is. *blinks* Rowen's creepy?? Nononono! But I'm glad you like the "Marth as a mage" thing! We love to write fantasy and couldn't resist! Thanks for joining the group!), Oketsu Ame (Heh, so many readers, so many people who like our work! *cheers*), Shea (Freaky? How is it freaky? *pouts* It's supposed to be cool…), Turquoisefox (*snorts* Uh.. Gaimen? Heh. Pronounce it however you desire. ^_~ Oh, and about the incest thing… Well, Xan fibbed a little and pulled a fast one on me! Don't blame me!) LiL PriNCeSs Me (Sorry, but we take a lot of pride in our "mean-ness"… Isn't that what keeps you guys so interested?), and Li Kayun (*grins* Yes, I rather like Roy-chan as my little brat. He tends to deal with situations much differently that Marth does, which makes it more fun to write. *huggles Roy-chan*)

Roy looked at Marth sleeping there peacefully. He hated the Prince for what he was, but did he hate him for _who_ he was? The auburn-haired teen shook his head and lay down, still looking at Marth's face.

          The exiled Prince was desirable, no doubt to that, but he disliked him too much. He would probably be better suited to a girl (or princess) with a personality like his own- but wait, why was he thinking like this?

          Sure, he'd had small flings between a few soldiers, but those had been purely physical and non-personal to relieve tension, nothing else. The teen didn't have any desires, really, but instead focused on the sword and his training. He kept telling himself that he would become the greatest general ever and he would be in the history books forever.

          But, that was the future and the present was looking pretty miserable right now. He went to sleep in a bad disposition, and would most likely wake up in one.

          When Marth awoke the next morning, he felt better than he had in days. Whether it was due to the fact that they were in the presence of a powerful Mage or that he was a fast healer, he didn't know. He sat up and ran a hand through his tousled dark blue hair. It was absurdly long now, about an inch past his shoulders. It had always grown much faster than everybody else's. He had a memory of his father catching hold of him when he was younger with very long hair and hacking it off haphazardly with a dagger, growling how he didn't want his son looking like a court beauty. He had gone around for the next while with his hair all uneven and choppy.

          Stubble had also invaded Marth's usually smooth face, making it prickly. He rubbed it and frowned. Maybe Rowen had a razor he could lend him.

          Not bothering to pull on a shirt, Marth got up out of the cot and limped from the room. He found the exit of the cottage and went outside.

          The cold air caressed his skin like a gentle lover. Marth let out a sigh of contentment as it flowed into his body, making him feel whole. He went to the stable to check up on Cloud and Roy's black mare. They were fine, warm, and well fed. Rowen obviously knew how to keep his animals in good accommodations.

          Once outside again, Marth raised his hand and concentrated experimentally. Ice blue power gathered in his palm, swirling there like a miniature blizzard.

          "You're quite good, you know that?" Rowen's rough voice sounded through the air, loud and clear from the entrance to the small stable. The mage had changed his other robes for more earth-colored ones. "You have a natural gift that not many have. In fact, the amount of magic power these days has dwindled, leaving only a few select mages in this land, so you are a rarity indeed."

          Marth turned around and looked at the mage, slightly surprised.

          "I don't even know what I'm doing, really. I never expected to be a Mage or to have any kind of magic. But now that I do, I wish to learn all I can about it. Do the lessons begin today?"

          The brown-haired man nodded, walking over to Marth and placing a hand over the ex-prince's heart briefly. A blue light glowed where their skin came into contact. When Rowen pulled away, his amethyst eyes looked lively and bright.

          "You know… I think this could be a great deal of fun. Let's start with the basics, shall we?"

          Rowen led Marth back into the cabin and into a dark room he'd never seen before. When the mage went around the room, he touched several rocks, which automatically started glowing and illuminating the room at his touch.

          It was a library of sorts, with shelves full of books and other items of unknown purpose and origin, most probably for magic.

          "This is my study, where I train myself and read. You may use this place to your benefit, if you wish. Sit here…" The mage motioned, sitting down on a circular rug on the floor.

          The exiled Prince followed his example and settled on the rug across from Rowen. His cobalt blue eyes traveled over the room's interior.

          "Thank you. What should I do now?"

          "Just sit still a moment. I'm going to teach you basic mage tools, like how to mindspeak, start fires (seeing as it's useful this time of year), and then we'll begin on your real power."

          The older man probed Marth's mind with his own and found a flowing connection.

          _'Do you hear this?'_ he sent. _'Concentrate and try to speak to me with your mind, not your mouth.'_

          Marth jumped a bit, unused to hearing voices in his head. He opened his mouth to answer, and then stopped himself.

          _'Mind, not mouth.'_ He told himself, concentrating on Rowen's mind. _'Yes, I can hear you.'_

_          'Good. I want you to talk to me like this for a while until you get used to it, no talking. And remember, you can use this any time you cannot speak or just want to with any person- the only thing is if they are able to reply back or not. Like, take your friend for instance.'_

The mage got a large stone bowl and put some kindling in it. A small fire had formed after an instant- Rowen had clearly started it with a wave of his hand.

          _'Now, I know that with your kind of power, you're more likely to kill this fire than make it bigger, but I want you to try.'_

Marth nodded and stretched his power towards the fire tentatively. It sputtered violently before going out completely.

          He drew back, startled.

          "I'm sorry!" He said aloud to Rowen before remembering that he was only supposed to use mindspeech.

          _'I'm sorry,'_ he said again, this time correctly.

          _'That's all right. I expected that to happen, actually. It's no fault of yours,'_ Rowen replied, lighting the fire once again. _'Perhaps we should just concentrate on not killing it first, then work from there.'_

The blue-haired young man nodded and reached out for the fire again, even more tentatively than before. He touched it with his powers, half-expecting in to go out. To his surprise, it turned ice blue and dimmed only slightly, then re-grew to its normal size. Marth looked to Rowen, waiting instruction from the mage.

          Rowen nodded in approval, making the fire go out with a wave of his hand.

          _'Good, you're learning control. We'll touch on the firestarting again after we see how powerful you are with the ice and cold. Do you think you could create snow in here out of thin air, or have you only tried to control what is already there?'_ he sent.

          _'I've only _tried_ to control the storm and it knocked me out for a week,'_ Marth said. _'But I can try…'_

          The ex-prince closed his eyes and fumbled around within him, searching for the icy core of power. He found and unlocked it, bringing it to the surface. He didn't know it, but he was glowing an eerie blue color.

          _'Snow,'_ he whispered mentally. _'I want snow.'_

          A few flakes formed in the air and floated slowly down to the floor.

          Marth's blazing blue eyes narrowed,

          _'_Real_ snow.'_

          He focused harder and abruptly there was a bright flash of blue and a swirl of snow.

          Marth opened his eyes again and found that snow covered everything. He looked at Rowen, brushing through the snow that had piled on top of his head.

          _'That was great,'_ Rowen complimented, standing up and going to open up a window. The weather mage created wind and moved all the snow from the room to outside where it belonged. But the temperature of the area dropped even more.

          _'It looks like I'll have to wear more clothes when training you,'_ the amethyst-eyed man said with a slight shiver, which he covered very well. _'I should get you some clothes. Would you like a tunic and robes since we're going to be outside? Just because you feel unaffected by the cold doesn't mean you have to walk around half-naked.'_

Marth blushed slightly at the praise and looked down at the floor.

          _'I don't mind, but I'll put clothes on,'_ he sent back, his mindspeech still wavering a bit.

          _'That's what I thought. I'll be right back with the clothing and then we'll get some food- it's nothing what palace kitchens bring out, but at least its something. Feel free to touch anything,'_ Rowen replied mentally, and then walked out of the room.

          Marth looked around the small chamber. His eye lighted upon a book lying open on a table. Curious, he walked over to it and looked at the page. It was written in his language, but the dialect was quite ancient. A large, beautifully detailed drawing was on the opposite page. It showed a countryside plagued with famine. Men and animals were suffering; the land was barren and dead. Then, it showed a man in robes waving his hand over the land and it became green and alive again. Marth's eyes widened.

          "If only I could do such a thing to Altea…"

          "Wouldn't that be nice…? But probably the best thing you could do is freeze the land over, which wouldn't be good," interjected Rowen as he walked back in carrying a few things. He handed the Marth a clean black tunic and blue robes to put on.

          The exiled Prince took the clothes and dressed himself. Black and blue were _very_ good colors for Marth. They set off his pale skin along with his blue hair and eyes dramatically.

          "So all my powers will pertain only to ice and snow?"

          _'That is your element, so yes, for now…'_ the mage reverted back to mindspeech, _'but you have to put things into perspective- You've only been at this for two or so days, but maybe after a few years, you could branch out and test other powers.'_

Marth nodded. Rowen had a very valid point- he couldn't possibly hope to be a master of magecraft after only such a short time. But Marth had decided that he _would_ aspire to become the most powerful Mage that he could be. For his kingdom, his people, and maybe even himself.

          _'Let's eat, then go outside to train. Oh, and I almost forgot, will your friend be joining us anytime soon?'_

          The blue-haired man blinked. He hadn't seen Roy all morning.

          _'I honestly don't know. I'm unsure as to how long he intends to sleep.'_

Your friend. Rowen's words made Marth stop and think. _Were_ they friends? He had never been anything less than civil and helpful to the general, but Roy still acted like he hated him. Why? The question plagued the prince, despite his efforts to shrug it off.

          _'Alright, that's fine.'_ Rowen led him to a kitchen-like area and started making something that looked somewhat like food. _'The two of you make quite a pair, I think. You have powers of ice and he seems like the type that despises the cold… But it is not my business anyways. Here, eat.'_

The mage handed him a bowl of hot oatmeal, a spoon, and a large chunk of bread. Once Marth had taken it, he got his own.

          Marth didn't feel like discussing his unknown and tremulous relationship with Roy, so he remained silent and ate as per Rowen's instructions.

          _'Is there any way I can repay you for your kindness towards us?'_ he asked at last when he had finished.

          The elder magic-holder dumped his dish into a small tub of water and turned to leave the room.

          _'I don't think there's much you can do for an old hermit like me, but if you think of anything when you've got your kingdom back, you know where to find me. Come on outside,'_ he replied.

          The blue-haired man stood and followed Rowen, feeling more at ease knowing that he would be able to pay the mage back.

          _'Oh, and get your sword. You're going to need it because I'm going to train you in a whole different way than those pansies at the castle,'_ Rowen told him, grabbing his own longsword before walking out.

          Roy woke up cold, tired and hungry. He got out of bed stiffly and opened the door and crack just in time to see that middle-aged hermit and Marth walk out the front door with swords in hand. The teen shook his head with a deep frown, closing the door again and climbing back into the cot with a shiver.

          _'This is insane. We're supposed to be going to the castle and reclaiming it, not stopping so "his highness" can get special magic training… But then again, I can't travel in this weather. Oh, hell…'_

TBC…

Vallen: *stretches, cracking her knuckles* Wow. I guess it's just a matter of what you set your mind to, 'cause I typed this one pretty fast… I know, I know, it needs to be PUT UP faster, but… waiii… *whines* Anyways, did you enjoy that one? It was mostly about the magic… Fun! 

Xan: (Evil Vallen was too impatient to put this up that she didn't ask Xan for comments, seeing as she wouldn't get them till much later)

FORBODING HINT FROM VALLEN: I'm so excited about the next chapter! *can barely contain her excitement* I cannot wait to hear what you guys have to say about THAT… Heh. Much fun lies in store for the next installment! Till next time! *evil grin*


	14. Tension

"Fubuki no Kaen" 

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes: Vallen: *cheers* YES! This is the exciting/tense chapter that I've… *cough* … you've all been waiting for.

Xan: Hey guys! Sorry I haven't commented for a while. Let's just say that it's due to parental difficulties. *sweatdrop* But I'm back and I think that you'll really like this one. At least, Vallen and I do. *evil grin*

Thanks to: Li Kayun (*laughs nervously* Heh… Yeah… *straightens up* Shhh! You'll find out about that later! Gosh, we have smart readers…), Spectrum (Yeah, the big training scene is in this chapter, so enjoy! Rowen is quite weird… And I was suffering right along with you in that chapter! No Roy!), LiL PriNCeSs Me (Gr, hate those annoying brothers! Xan has two and I have one… Heh, I said that note at the end to keep you guys interested. Suspense, ne?), ashford2ashford (^____^ Yay! If you're looking for more Marth/Roy fics, we have two more planned, I think. The F.no.K sequel is on the drawing board and we're thinking about the OTHER one.), Moiras (Like your sn! Hehehe… Our story is wicked! *adds that to the list of adjectives* Oh, and to answer your question: We bring the notebook to school and hand it off to each other every other period (whenever we get our "reply" done), so yes, we are still writing it and typing it up when we have the time. We're writing maniacs! At any given time, one of us could have "six inches" worth of notebooks in our backpacks…), Pichu*Star (tee-hee… Yes, I am excited! I can't wait to see what you guys say to that one. But then again, you probably aren't even reading this 'cause you're too busy reading the fic! Oh, and the "flings" part… Some Roman general (I think it was Alexander the Great) said that he promoted soldiers choosing partners/lovers on the battlefield, because he believed that soldiers would fight harder for their lovers right next to them in battle, rather than their wives far away. So I base my assumption off of that. Wow, that was long… I babble too much.), Alex (*blink* Quit high school? As much as we would love to do that, we can't… Gah. Oh, and the building of events creates great suspense… I like it.), tikimoof (Oooh! Chobits and Utena! Yay! I haven't read Chobits, but I like Utena very much. You have to tell me how they are! Anyways, yes, we can't help cliffhangers. We just leave the chapter off wherever we see fit… After all, our e-mail IS xan_vallen@cliffhanger.com… heh. I love that.), Shea (Freaky? Okay… Heh, we WILL keep it up. We love doing this!), Unproductivity (Mercedes Lackey, huh? Well, Xan and I are both very big fans of her… You get your bit of yaoi in this chapter!), lupa with a pen (^.^ Best ever? I wouldn't go so far as to say that, but if that's what you think, I won't argue… ~_^), Sami Sasamy (Don't worry, we will keep it up…), Miru-muru (*cheers for old hermits* Yea! Oh, and have you forgotten? We ARE mean…), tomboy51392 (Ahem… Roy-chan is mine for the moment, but anyways… And yes, both of us like the harry potter books very much, except we haven't really been too keen on the movies…), and YoshiMars (We're very glad you like the magic and angst is one of my specialties, so you'll be seeing a lot of that… With Xan's writing ability (she's REALLY good at plot) and my… *cough* well, me… you'll be liking this a lot more!).

It felt good to be back outside. Marth's eyes shone and his breath fogged the air slightly. He was excited about becoming a Mage. It almost made him forget the tortures that he had somehow lived through to get to this point.

          _'How long do you plan to stay here?'_ Rowen's mindspeak voice interrupted Marth's thoughts. The mage stood in the thick snow, holding his large sword and rubbing his sleeve on it to clean the blade.

          _'Not sure. I want to learn, but I also must return to reclaim Altea.'_ Marth unsheathed Falcion and took a few swings, savoring the feeling of his wonderful, dependable sword in his hand.

          _'That's what I thought… You'll know when it's time to leave, I'm predicting. I just wanted to make sure you didn't have a set time to leave before you started. I'd be disappointed to lose such a promising pupil…'_

Marth's ears burned red from the unexpected praise. He had rarely ever been praised by anyone at his father's command. The King hadn't wanted a son who begged for praise like a mangy dog.

          _'Thank you,'_ he sent, his mental voice quiet, _'what is the next lesson?'_

          _'I'll tell you later. Now, we're going to duel and you're going to lose horribly. Just keep in mind that this is part of your training.'_ The mysterious mage grinned for the first time, readying his sword.

          Marth blinked and lowered his sword. He hadn't lost a sword duel in years and was considered to be a master of the blade. The exiled prince was curious to know how he was going to lose horribly. He shrugged, lifted his sword, and struck at Rowen.

          Rowen chuckled and came at the ex-prince, their swords meeting as they sparred. Suddenly the mage's mouth quirked into a tiny smirk and an abrupt strong wind blew Marth backwards, almost off his feet.

          Marth's eyes widened and he dropped into a crouch to keep his balance. His fingertips touched the ground lightly, steadying him. His eyes had become cold and calculating. What was the mage up to now?

          _'Do you understand now? Or do I have to demonstrate some more? Stop trying to hit me and hit me,'_ Rowen beckoned, ready for anything.

          The blue-haired man growled and bared his teeth angrily. He took his sword in both hands and swung it as hard as he could at Rowen's neck.

          Falcion met the mage's large sword and electricity crackled between the two of them, originating from Rowen. The energy coursed down Falcion, jolting Marth's arms and hands painfully.

          _'Hmm… Almost fun. I do believe I still have my talent.'_

Marth broke away with a curse, smoking slightly. Still glaring at the grinning mage, he removed his shirt and robes, tossing them aside. His eyes burning blue fire, he charged Rowen again.

          _'Lesson One: Fighting a Full Mage can be quite aggravating if you aren't one yourself.'_ In a series of complex moves and using the wind again, Rowen knocked Marth to the ground, his sword tip pointed at the ex-prince's neck, lightly pricking.

          Marth pushed the blade aside and rolled quickly out of the way. He jumped to his feet, grabbing his sword.

          "One more time." He snarled. The former prince held Falcion in his hands and faced Rowen. The mage saw with surprise that the blade was blazing as brightly as Marth's eyes but his student didn't seem to notice. He ran at Rowen and swept the sword down at him. There was a blinding flash of snow and a roar of wind.

          _'Nice try, but I see you're getting the point,'_ the mage's voice echoed loudly in Marth's head. Rowen stood behind the blue-haired man, behind a shield of fiercely blowing wind. _'You use that technique to cloud my vision, but also risk yours. Interesting.'_

Marth turned around, head bowed in defeat. He threw Falcion onto the ground.

          _'You win. I'm too weak to defeat you, even though I used dishonest tactics. I _can_ see through the snow.'_

_          'Pick up your sword,'_ came Rowen's stern voice. _'I _told _you that you were going to lose horribly, so why are you disappointed now? That's why we're going to train, understand? You _learn_ from your mistakes, not cower and apologize to a higher being when you make them.'_

Marth winced and picked Falcion up out of the snow. Rowen had sounded so much like his father just then. Too much. He ran his finger along the blade and wasn't surprised to find that it now bled. A drop of blood fell onto the snow, hissing and steaming.

          _'That's the first time I've ever used Falcion and magic at the same time,'_ he said, finally looking up at Rowen again. _'I had no idea that it would react that powerfully. Could the sword itself have magic?'_

_          'Perhaps. But it will when I'm done with it, though. It is not uncommon for swords to have power within them,'_ Rowen answered, then stopped, glancing towards the cabin.

          Roy was standing there, the omnipresent scowl upon his face. He was wearing his warm black breeches and several long-sleeved tunics over one another.

          "Well, look who decided to grace us with his presence. Good morning," the mage said aloud, which Roy did not dignify with an answer.

          Marth glanced at Roy's bundled form and realized that he was still shirtless and covered in dirt, sweat and snow. He picked his clothes up and pulled them back on.

          "Good morning, Roy." He said quietly.

          The ex-general thought for a moment whether he wanted to answer or not.

          "'Morning," he replied curtly. "Could I possibly see you alone for a second? Or would that 'disturb' anything?"

          Marth nodded.

          "Certainly." He walked with Roy off to the side. "Is anything wrong?"

          "What exactly is it you're doing?" Roy asked quickly.

          "I'm learning how to use these powers I've been 'blessed' with," Marth replied. "They will be useful in reclaiming Altea and defeating Gaimen. I do apologize for the delay this makes in our journey, but it's unavoidable."

          "Damn you and your stupid powers…" Roy growled, clenching a fist. "How long are you going to make me wait?"

          "I did not ask for them. And need I remind you that they saved our lives? Twice, even. Do not disregard them so."

          "Yes, Your 'Highness'," the teen sneered, "Anything else I should do while I'm at it?"

          Marth's eyes narrowed and he hauled back and punched Roy in the face as hard as he could.

          "How many fucking times do I have to tell you not to call me that, you dense, arrogant, self-centered little bastard?! That's not who I am anymore!"

          Roy reeled back, staggering to lean against the side of the cabin. Blood flowed from his nose and his upper lip was beginning to swell. When he cleared his head, he marched right back over to Marth.

          "I don't have to take orders from a goody-goody ex-prince who was too weak to stand up for himself when he was accused of a crime he did not commit!" He punched Marth back, hitting the ex-royal in the stomach with his hard fist.

          Marth doubled over, pressing one hand to his abdomen.

          "And I won't be spoken to this way by a bratty little boy who is too full of foolish pride to be civil who has been nothing but decent to him!" He tackled Roy and pinned him to the ground, punching his face repeatedly. "And who thinks that just because he can beat one man, it makes him General of an entire army!"

          Roy could do nothing but lie there and take it, trying not to cry out with each hit. It hurt, but Marth was right, and he was _not_ weak. He just continued to stare into the blue-haired man's eyes, wondering when his anger would run out.

          Suddenly he threw everything away and raised a hand to grab the back of Marth's neck and pull the ex-prince's face close to his. He kissed Marth then, still staring into the similar blue eyes, unafraid.

          Marth's eyes became impossibly wide and his icy fury melted. He was too surprised to kiss back, but he didn't pull away either. The kiss tasted of blood and Marth could feel that Roy's lip was swelling badly.

          When it ended, Marth was still on top of Roy, pinning him to the ground. Their faces were only about an inch apart and Marth's lips were stained with blood from Roy's. He could only stare at the auburn-haired boy, shock registering on his face.

          Roy turned his head to the side, covering his face gently with one hand, not wanting Marth to see the pain there. He was stronger than that.

          _'Oh Gods… What have I done now?'_ The teen put on a mask to face the ex-prince again. He reached up and rubbed the blood off Marth's face gently.

          "I was wrong…" Roy whispered with his speech hindered by the blood and his swollen lip.

          His face calm and maybe just a little paler than usual, Marth climbed off of Roy, but still held him to the ground with one hand. With the other, he tentatively placed a finger on Roy's lip. His touch was very cold and helped the swelling go down considerably.

          Marth stood up, taking a step away from Roy.

          "Why did you do that?" He asked with his voice hardly about a whisper. Confusion was making his head spin and he had no idea what to feel.

          "I don't know," Roy replied. He lay there, looking up at Marth. The teen felt too sore to move and was afraid to, actually. "I offended you, didn't I?"

          "No.... Just surprised." Marth took a step back, eyes never leaving Roy. "I'm.... sorry…" He turned, walking off quickly towards the stable. A minute later, Cloud burst out of the building and galloped off into the forest, Marth on his back.

          Rowen stepped out into the area where Roy was laying, one eyebrow raised.

          "Well, that was certainly interesting," he said to no one in particular. Then he turned to the auburn-haired teen,

          "Come. You can get yourself cleaned up inside."

          Roy got up slowly and stumbled back inside, with the mage at his heels.

          Cloud raced through the snowy forest, his warm breath creating small buffs of steam in the air. Marth let him run as he pleased, not keeping his mind on where he was going.

          _'What _was_ that?'_ He asked nobody. _'Why did he kiss me for? Was it just to get me to stop hitting him or because I was just there, or because of another reason? Does this mean he _does_ feel something for me or is he just using me?!' _Tears of frustration and anger leaked out of the corners of his eyes and he squeezed his eyes shut.

          "Who am I?!" He screamed aloud. Cloud, alarmed by his master's outburst, neighed loudly and reared up on his hind legs. Marth fell off and hit the ground sharply. He lay there a moment, staring up at the blue sky between the treetops. Concerned, Cloud walked over cautiously and nudged Marth's cheek with his soft nose. Marth raised a hand to pat Cloud, assuring him that he was fine.

          "I am Marth, exiled Price of Altea. It is my mission to reclaim my kingdom. My own personal wants, needs and dilemmas are irrelevant. My life is not my own, it is my peoples'."

          Marth repeated this to himself several times, forcing himself to cast aside his emotions and become ice. He mounted Cloud again and began to ride back.

To Be Continued…

Vallen: *giggles happily* Oooh! Torture, angst- I love it! Don't you? 

Xan: *pokes all the readers* Well? Did you like it? Of course you did! But now what's gonna happen to our poor boys? You'll just have to wait and find out!__


	15. Shock

Fubuki no Kaen

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes:

Xan: Here we go again, guys! Another chapter! This one is another fun one (aren't they all?) but not as dramatic as the last. Hope you don't mind. Oh, and I did the thank-you's this time.  
Vallen: *bows repeatedly* We're _sorry_!! That's all I have to say… Oh, and thank you for all the wonderful feedback! It fuels our inspiration!

  
Thanks to: Li Kayun (yes, THE KISS! We were really excited about it. And it may be "obvious from the title" but we still like it that you dupe it out), Seraphim (Well, here is the more you asked for! Yumminess indeed!!), Miru-Miru (^_^ Greedy-ness is okay when it's for fanfiction! If you weren't greedy, we'd feel unloved. And yes, Rowen did see all that!), Pichu*Star (Yes, poor Marth-baby! He's all confruzzled. *pats Marth* And thanks, we hope its not awkward!), RcA (Yes and there's still more fun yet to be had!), Sami Sasamy (Yay, somebody loves it as much as us!), Oketsu Ame (Sorry we didn't get this out sooner! We had "parental problems" *cough*xansparentsaremean*cough*), Shea (Thank you! At least we're unpredictable to somebody! Thanks!), Spectrum (YES! Somebody caught the Matrix reference! I was gonna say something about that, but I forgot -_-;; but I'm glad you did! Rowen is like Marth and Roy's own personal Morpheus, so we decided to stick that in 'cause it was funny. And of course Marth took off, wouldn't you?), LiL PriNCeSs Me (Thanks for your praise! We like doing things unexpectedly, so that means a lot!), Unproductivity (Yangst! That is a great word! Sorry for making you wait so long, but here it is!), Alex Brown (Wow, a fan for life! As we've said before, your comments mean LOADS to us and hearing that we're doing well really boosts our day!), lupa with a pen (Yes it IS worth it!), Winstrough (Hey, glad even non-yaoi fans like it! That means that it's not just smut-writing), tikimoof (We're not confusing you- you're confusing yourself! ^_^ Oh, and we did see the Two Towers and we both loved it! Xan's got an Ent fetish while Vallen obsessed with Gollum. (Vallen note: He's so cute!! *chu!* end note) Don't ask. And yes, I've read the books but Vallen hasn't), vv (Of course Marth talks to himself! It's a sign of intelligence, Einstein actually said that. And no, Rowen can't always read thoughts, just sometimes), YoshiMars (YES! A ROWEN FAN!! We love that old guy to bits, he's just so fun!), PandaBear007 (Thanks!), Spanish Ninja Sneasel (Hm… I'm pretty sure that we'd decided to use magic from the very beginning. It was just a matter of getting to it. Rowen was a risk because some original characters turn out really badly, but we're glad you like him! And what's wrong with it being centered around Marth? It'll be like that for a while because Roy's kind of just there…), Boethas (Thank you, intensity was what we were going for! It was supposed to be a very dramatic and climactic scene and I'm glad we did that! Oh, and y'all can thank Vallen for all the cliffhangers- that's her department), Klar (OH MY GOD WE LOOOVED YOUR FANART! It's so pretty!), Spade (YES! 10/10! Score!), divinehero&yami (Like I said, thank Vallen for the cliffhangers)

"That was stupid of you," Rowen told Roy. The two of them sat in the cabin, but the teen was hunched over in a chair, keeping his distance. "Who knows when he'll come back now."

          Roy growled and looked even more uncomfortable and brooding.

          "Shut up, old man. You told me that already."

          The ex-general's face was shadowed, but there were several bandages and bruises on it, his upper lip still a bit puffy. In other words: a mess.

          The weather mage shrugged and resumed his knitting.

          It was dark by the time Marth returned to the cabin. He put Cloud away and patted Roy's mare affectionately. He didn't feel like going into the house, so he made himself a little nest in the straw and curled up, asleep among the horses.

          "You can go to sleep now- He has returned," Rowen informed Roy, lifting his eyes from the needles in his hands.

          The teen stood, glancing around.

          "I don't see or hear him."

          "Trust me on this one. Go to bed and I guarantee that you'll see him in the morning," the mage replied, getting up and exiting to his own room for the night.

          Roy grumbled to himself, climbing into the cot that was his temporary bed.

          _'Why the hell did I do that? Am I really attracted to him? That's what I was afraid of…'_

          Marth awoke to a sharp pain on his head the following morning. He opened his eyes to discover Cloud standing above him, calmly chewing his hay. Several strands of blue hair were hanging out of the horse's mouth. Marth groaned and pulled them out.

          "That's my hair you're eating," he told the horse. "Although I can't see how you can confuse hay and hair anyways. They're not even the same color."

          Cloud shook his mane and stepped aside as Marth got slowly to his feet, brushing the straw out of his hair and clothes. He was filthy from head to foot, covered in mud, straw and dried sweat from the day before. He needed a bath.

          Marth walked out of the stable and over to the well. He pulled up a bucket of freezing cold water and stripped down to his breeches. He began to clean himself, even his hair. When he was done, he dried himself off, using a bit of the robes as a towel. His hair he left wet, preferring to just let it drip-dry. He went into the cabin, not knowing what to expect.

          "Ah, the prodigal son returns…" Rowen's voice from the kitchen greeted Marth the moment he walked in.

          Marth sat down in a chair and looked around. "What's going on?"

          "Oh, not much really. I'm making breakfast, if you call it that," the amethyst-eyed man indicated to the oatmeal/broth mixture. "I'm not the world's best cook- But I have a feeling you wanted more of an answer to that question, ne?"

          "Food sounds fine." Marth neatly ignored the older man's question and pulled on his shirt.

          As Rowen set down Marth's bowl of morning food, he paused.

          "Should I wake your friend or do you want to do it? I would guess that he'd like to eat as well."

          The exiled prince stood up. "I'll do it." He went into the room he shared with the young general.

          Roy was asleep on the cot, looking younger and more innocent, as he always did when he was asleep. Marth stood next to the cot, looking at him for a moment before he woke him up. He had a sudden image of how Roy had looked when they were still Trave's slaves- naked except for the shorts and shackles and color. He had looked younger there too. Marth shuddered at the unpleasant memory and crouched down.

          "Roy," he said softly, shaking him. "Roy, wake up."

          The teen sat up almost immediately after Marth had touched him, looking disoriented.

          "… Yes, Sir!" he shouted, knocking the ex-prince's hand away. Then he woke up. "Uh… Where am I?" Roy muttered, rubbing his eyes gently, wary of the bruises. The ex-soldier saw Marth and blinked,

          "Oh."

          Marth had drawn back sharply, startled by Roy's reaction.

          "Sorry for waking you, but Rowen's making breakfast now," he said.

          "Hm…" Roy murmured, pushing aside the blankets and getting out of bed. "I'm surprised you're even talking to me. Or have you pushed that away from your mind?"

          "I haven't." Marth looked down at the floor. "How's your face?"

          "It's okay. Sore, but okay. You really pounded me yesterday… I'm surprised you didn't break my nose."

          "It wasn't for lack of trying," Marth admitted. "And I apologize for some of the things I said yesterday. They were uncalled for."

          "Don't apologize," Roy said sharply in a low voice. His eyes grew a little darker as they looked at Marth.

          Marth closed his mouth, not saying anything. His eyes bored right back into Roy's.

          "I honestly have no idea why I kissed you. If you wanted an answer, I have none to give. I don't like girls, so I prefer to just not get tangled with anyone… I guess I slipped up," Roy replied, his voice tight, as if it was being wrenched from his throat.

          Marth paused for a moment before speaking next.

          "I didn't mind. Actually, I enjoyed it. But if you claim that if was unintentional and you don't want to get 'get tangled' with anyone, then I won't pursue it any further." The ex-royal turned and walked back into the kitchen, fighting to keep his face blank.

          The auburn-haired teen stood there, eyes wide and staring at the spot where Marth had been.

          Enjoyed it? The stoic ex-prince had actually enjoyed it? Okay, okay, so what if he still remembered the feel of Marth's soft lips and the aftertaste of blood lingering on his own. Granted, it had been Roy's own blood, but the sharp, metallic substance had only added to the sensation.

          He finally found his feet right on the floor where he had left them and walked to the kitchen, sitting stiffly in a chair. Marth was there too, eating wordlessly.

          Rowen handed Roy a bowl as well and eyed him.

          "Perhaps you two should fight more often," the mage teased quietly. "You know what they say: The worse the fight, the better the make-up sex…"

          Roy stood up angrily, knocking the chair over.

          "_Will_ you not shut up?! I am trying to sort this in my head and here you are, talking like a gossiping primary school girl!" he yelled, wishing he had his sword. But then again, if Marth couldn't beat the mage…

          Rowen shrugged, going to the tub and washing a few dishes.

          "Hm. Perhaps seeing actual people has made me forget my hermit-like actions," he mused, then threw only Marth a glance, as if to say: _I did not mean to offend you._

          Marth put down his spoon and looked calmly at Rowen.

          "I am very much aware of the debt that we owe you, Master Mage. You have been more than generous, opening your home and sharing your food with us, even giving me training. But, that business is our own and it would be appreciated if you didn't interfere."

          _'Please Rowen,'_ Marth sent to him privately. _'Don't make him any angrier. I'm the one who will have to suffer for it.'_

          The mage shrugged again with a small no.

          "I realize that now. I apologize," he said aloud shortly, then turned his mind to Marth: _'Fine, fine… He is fun to tease, though.'_

          Roy found himself cursing at himself for even walking to the hermit's doorstep. He let out his breath in a heavy, exasperated sigh, bending over to straighten his chair.

          "What's on the agenda for today?" the blue-haired man asked the both of them quietly. "Because if it's possible, I'd like to train with Roy as well."

          The ex-general looked at Marth in surprise once he had sat down again, throwing glares at Rowen from time to time.

          "What?"

          The weather mage look thoughtful for a moment,

          "That's fine. It'd give my creaky bones a rest…" he murmured, even though it was very unlikely that he would get tired.

          Marth glanced towards Rowen, knowing full well that the mage was pleased at the prospect of a show.

          "Gaimen is not a weak man, as I'm sure you remember," Marth looked back up into Roy's eyes. "We are going to attempt to reclaim an entire kingdom by ourselves. We have to train if we hope to pull this off because it won't just be Gaimen up against us. He has control of the army and the castle guards. And he will not hesitate to annihilate anything that threatens his power."

          "And I will watch," Rowen interjected, done with the dishes. "Maybe even give you a few pointers… And don't tell me that you're both master swordsmen, because I know you aren't. You're still young and there's much you can still learn."

          Roy resisted the urge to glare at Rowen, and instead focused on Marth.

          "I will do everything I can, and we do have one advantage if he chooses to use the guards on us. I know what they can and can't do because I trained most of them myself."

          "As do I," Marth said, although they had seen the Royal Guards in two different ways, Roy as a fellow soldier and Marth as a prince.

          "If we're all done eating, we can go now."

          Roy stood up, handing the mage his bowl somewhat-roughly.

          "I'll be right back. I need more clothes and my sword if we're going to be outside…" He disappeared into the room.

          _'I take it you're going to go easy on him?'_ Rowen glanced at Marth, _'Or do you still have anger to work out? If you wish to train with magic, train with me. It would be painful to watch you and him go at it with you using magic.'_

          The barest of evil smiles crossed Marth's face as he leaned over to lace up his boots.

          _'Just a little. But unlike you, I am a Prince and I have strict morals, old man.'_

          _'I am no sort of old man, you whippersnapper!'_ Rowen looked indignant as he reached over to rap Marth on the head sharply. But the exiled prince ducked, a bit of a mischievous gleam in his eye.

          Roy walked in just then, looking at the two of them with a raised brow. The teen was wearing more clothes than before and looked considerably warmer. His sword (in its sheath) was slung over his shoulder. He shook his head and walked outside.

          Rowen let out a short laugh, grabbed his larger sword, and moved towards the door.

          "Coming?"

          Marth nodded, his expression fading back to its normal icy one. Falcion was lying in its sheath on the table. He took it and followed Rowen outside.

          The auburn-haired teen was there, stretching out his muscles that hadn't been worked out in quite a while. Actually, the cold had made him unusually stiff and he needed to move around more to keep warm.

          "What are we starting out with? I can do some exercises if you want to take the old man first," he questioned.

          "If you think you'll need that long to warm up and be ready to fight me," Marth replied, stretching himself. He flexed his fingers, concentrating as they glowed faintly blue. He turned to Rowen.

          _'How does one warm up using magic? Or is it even necessary?'_

          The mage's strong features turned serious once again and his mind-voice was that of a teacher's.

          _'Your mind must be completely ready for what you are about to do, or it may misfire. That's what makes evil mages- when mages aren't focusing on the magic and concentrate on their own amount of power. They become obsessed with it and it poisons their body. The best thing you can do is prepare your mind and make sure your body is in good shape, because as you've seen before, your health just deteriorates when your body isn't ready,'_ he explained mentally, then watched as Roy crossed the area to meet Marth.

          The ex-general unsheathed his sword and tossed the scabbard aside.

          "I'm ready."

          Marth nodded, inwardly absorbing Rowen's words and committing them to memory.

          "As am I."

To Be Continued…

Xan: Well, that's all for now guys! Hopefully we'll get the next chapter out a little sooner next time, but I have the notebook back now so it shouldn't be a problem!  (ed's note:  I was proof-reading this for Vallen and she kept spelling 'Gaimen' as 'Gaimer'.  *giggles*  I think that's funny…)

Vallen: *chuckles evilly* Yes… Blame that cliffhanger on me. We were sitting in bed, looking at the notebook and pointing at the spot where we wanted to leave it. "Or we could be evil and leave it here…*point*"


	16. Battle

Fubuki no Kaen

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes:

Xan:  Here we are again, guys!  I was in charge of typing up this chapter and I hope that it got out more quickly then some of the other ones.  This is the big battle scene you were clamoring for, so I hope you like it!  I also did the "thank yous!"

Vallen: Plus… There's talk about this *cough* "relationship" *cough* that's they're supposed to have, but… Just read!

Thanks to: Li Kayun ("Sappy-cliché?"  Ohhh boy, you're talkin' to the wrong writers here.  The last sappy thing I wrote ended with one of them dying in a really gruesome way, so I don't think we do sap very well), Boethas (*evil grin* Sorry, but we're evil by nature!  Can't help it!  ^_^), Spectrum (Maaan, I wanna play SSBM so bad!  Unfortunately, I don't have it, but Vallen got it for Christmas!  And she hasn't invited me over to play yet. *sniff sniff*  *feels unloved*  Oh well.  I can just imagine!), blank (Sorry, but I think you're going to be a little disappointed.  And he was NOT acting like an ass!  Or I didn't think so…  Was he, guys?), Sinnatious (Yes, tension IS fun to write!  You have no idea!  And Marth and Roy tension is doubly fun to write.  *'nother evil grin*), Spanish Ninja Sneasel (*sniffs*  Yeah I miss Trave too sometimes…  He was such a fun, evil character!  I'm afraid he doesn't come back- unlike most of our characters- he STAYS dead. *nervous laughter*  But I'm glad that you like the fic even without Trave there to be mean.  Just wait until Gaimen comes back.  He's a pretty sick puppy too), Miru-miru (Gah, not the rabid fans!  Anything but that!  *runs from them*  I hope this was quick enough!), Kit, Ankaire and stupid Yami (Heh!  Glad somebody likes our cliffhangers!  And you're right- we want you to be scared to miss the next update.  When we get them out.  Heh…), Pichu*Star (*big smile* Thanks!  I thought it would be fun to give the horses a little bit of a personality because they are technically semi-main characters), Dark Comet (Yay, Rowen's gotta 'nother fan!  We love that old guy as much as you do.  We take pride in our original charas like Rowen and Trave.  And ask Vallen about the italics on the group- she explains better then I), Moiras (Thank you for your comments!  After so many people saying that the kiss scene was hokey, I was getting kind of worried, but at least one person liked it, so that makes up for it a little.  Rowen is extremely fun and we're glad that everybody likes him so much!!  And since Roy was a general, it would only make sense that he'd wake up that way.  At least to Vallen…), Asudem (Oh, you want ACTION?  We'll GIVE you action!  HA!  *looks innocent*  Other cliffhangers?  Like what?), Lil Princess Me (Thanks!  Was this soon enough?  I hope so!), tikimoof (*much nervous laughter* I can't help it- Ents ROCK!  But the Nazgul are even cooler!  *huggles them*  Glad to have you back!), Belldandy (O_O 50 pages?  Wow, I hadn't realized!  I'm honored that our little fic is plane-worthy reading materiel!  I hope your trip went well and you got all of it printed…), RcA (*sings*  Evil evil evil, that's us!), Tinie Ashie (Thanks!  Here ya go!!), YoshiMars (YES YES YES!!  Make us fanart!!  It makes us very very happy when people draw fanart of our scenes and stuff!!)

Marth lunged forward, sweeping his sword up towards Roy's face.  There was a momentary flash of blue from the blade and the force sent Roy flying head over heels.  Roy got up with a growl, deciding not to protest about the unfairness of the battle.  It was a matter of pride.

          "Okay…" He ran up to Marth, their swords meeting for the first time.  Roy had to grit his teeth and use all his strength to push as hard as he could against the ex-Prince's blade, but it seemed like even that wasn't enough.  

          Marth had sworn to only use magic on the first blow in order to deplete the last of his anger towards Roy.  After that, it was steel, strength and skill alone.  

          Roy's strength was impressive, especially considering his age and size compared to most other warriors.  Marth twisted his sword away from Roy's and jumped back into a defensive crouch, face calm and awaiting Roy's next move.

          The teen narrowed his eyes at the ex-Prince's stance.  In his eyes, only the weak and strategic took defensive positions this early in battle.  He charged Marth again, their swords clashing dangerously.  Roy called upon the techniques that he had been forced to learn even before he could pick up a sword at all.  It was his guess that Marth had something up his sleeve and was just waiting for him to tire.

          "You act as if you're being forced to fight me…  You're doing the least amount of work, just standing there and blocking my sword…" Roy hissed, feigning to his left, then slashing at the blue-haired man's chest.

Marth dropped to the ground, rolling out of the way of Roy's blade.  He jumped back up, smacking Roy's thigh sharply with the flat of his sword as he did so.  He didn't notice that his tunic had been sliced open by Roy's blade and that a long, shallow gash had been opened diagonally across his muscled chest.  Though not serious, it was bleeding profusely, staining his tunic and dribbling down his chest to his abdomen.

          The teen limped backwards with a wince.  The wound he had gotten from Trave had just started to scar and now the flesh throbbed painfully.  He drew himself up to stand as best he could and stared at Marth's chest, then to his face.

          "Are you going to fight me or not?"

          In response, Marth charged Roy with a whirlwind of moves, slashing with such calm ferocity that Roy was forced to retreat several steps back.  His eyes were everywhere, searching Roy's body and form for weaknesses, flaws in his defense.  Roy's technique was effective, but quite crude and unrefined, lacking the subtlety and tact of Marth's, whose style was centered around strategy as opposed to sheer strength.  Marth could predict exactly what Roy was going to do next just by watching his body, especially in the chest and arms.  He twisted his sword around Roy's, locking the blades together with a loud shriek that ground in their ears and leaned down on him, using his superior weight and size to his advantage.

          "I see now how you beat Gaimen."  He told his General.

          Roy grunted and pushed up against his opponent's sword, but was forced down to one knee.  With another burst of energy, he swept his leg under Marth's, knocking the ex-Prince to the ground roughly.  Marth struggled to his feet, finding that his sore body did not maneuver as quickly or as well as he needed it to.  Roy had plenty of time to get back on his own feet and prepare for the next wave of attacks.

          "And how is that?"

          A tiny, evil smirk crossed Marth's otherwise icy, expressionless face.  Roy had done exactly as he had hoped and was playing right into his hands.  Marth surged to his feet, driving his swords' point directly towards Roy's throat.  The General jumped back to avoid the razor-sharp blade.  In the split-second that Roy was thrown off-balance, Marth swiped at his sword hand, smacking it again with the flat of his blade.  Surprised, Roy dropped his sword.  Marth snatched it up with his left hand and knocked Roy to the ground.

          He stood over the auburn-haired General, holding one blade to Roy's heart and the other to his throat.  His eyes bored down into Roy's.

          "You fight like a soldier instead of like a knight.  He wasn't used to that style of combat after so many years off the battlefield and fighting only in the courts.  You have no tact, no refined strategy – you simply burst into the battle with nothing but steel and the will to win.  Your defense covers nothing but the vitals and you leave important areas completely unguarded altogether.  You surprised him because your style is atypical of what he was used to fighting and, additionally, your appearance is quite deceiving.  He probably didn't take your challenge seriously and you caught him unawares.  _That_ is how you beat him."

          Roy stared down the length of both swords into Marth's eyes, trying to decide whether the triumphant look in them was worth fighting back for.  He didn't like _anyone_ standing over him like that, but he had been defeated…  Two times in the last two days even.  The teen growled up at Marth, but did not move.

          "I was not trained to be a knight.  To me, chivalry is stupid, unnecessary at times, and I have no need for it.  Your uncle managed to knock me around pretty good, but I beat him in the end." He said quietly, in between breaths. "Although it doesn't seem like such a victory to me now…"

          Marth lowered the blades and handed Roy's back to him, hilt first.  It was a gesture of extreme trust.  If he wanted, all Roy had to do was push the blade foreword a few inches and Marth would be run through.

          "I was there when you fought him."

          The teen grabbed the hilt of his own sword and pressed against Marth's chest, then pulled away and rolled out from under him.  He got up, still favoring his leg a little bit.

          "Well, that's interesting…  What did you feel when you watched me?"

          "I was glad that somebody was doing what I lacked the strength and the courage to do." Marth's voice filled with icy hate and his hands tightened on the hilt of his sword.  He closed his eyes, trying to block it out. "But you didn't cut off his hands.  I wanted you to as I watched.  I kept whispering it."

          Roy frowned and stepped towards Marth, his sword raised.

          "He needed his hands to fight me, so that would have been completely illogical.  And besides, I thought you were a knight."

          Marth looked at Roy for a moment before peeling off his bloody, ripped tunic.  The wound on his chest was still bleeding, although not as badly.  He smeared some of the blood on his fingers and looked at it.

          "I _was_ a Prince.  They don't teach Princes chivalry – they teach them ruthlessness.  Chivalry is for idealists and fools who think that the world makes exceptions for nice people who follow all the rules." He tossed his hair out of his face. "It's a pity you didn't kill him."

          "And I would have been arrested if I had.  He was a powerful member of the kingdom even then," Roy replied flatly, looking a bit confused as he watched what Marth was doing with his own blood. "Oh, and my fighting style has changed a little bit, so your analysis was partially incorrect."

          "I know."  Marth fell quiet, looking down at the now-frozen blood on his fingers.  Slowly, he lifted them and touched his lips, then turned to Roy, face expressionless.

          "What is it that you feel for me?  What did that kiss mean?  If it was nothing and you really have no feelings for me, then tell me and put my heart to rest.  Because I don't want to be played with, Roy.  It may have been nothing to you, but it meant something to me and I don't," he paused, stumbling over his words as if there were a fault in his icy shell. "I don't want to be made into your toy."

          "So I see…" Roy murmured, picking his words carefully.  Then he raised his head to stare at Marth and raised also his voice a notch, but not so loud that Rowen, who was standing off to the side, could hear it.

          "You and I are different, that much is obvious.  I can have relations with someone without giving them a second thought afterwards, but you can't even receive a kiss without it haunting you.  What do you _want_ it to mean?  Do your sexual preferences lean towards the male sex?"

          "You're very good at avoiding questions that you don't want to answer.  Is that part of your training?"  Marth asked quietly, looking down at Roy. "I am tempted to ask how many men you have slept with to make you so indifferent towards the matter, but it is neither my business nor my concern.  I have slept with my share of men.  And I have slept with my share of women, but your kiss is the only one that has ever haunted me so.  I want only to know how you feel for me because I feel something for you and if there's no hope of getting anything in return, then I just want to forget about it."

          "You're a Prince, _Marth_, no matter what you think!  After all this is over and when we do _win_, you will eventually be King and where will that 'something for me' be then?"  Roy's face contorted with emotion.  The ex-Prince's endless barrage of questions had finally broken him down until he couldn't avoid them any longer.

          Then he realized that he had called the blue-haired man by his true name of Marth and clapped a hand over his mouth.  It was a sort of taboo among the people who served the royalty of Altea that it was forbidden to call the royals by their first names alone.  Roy remembered receiving a harsh beating that had been the result of referring to Marth by his first name only as a small boy.  The child in him glanced around, looking for Brock's heavy hand to come swooping down on him again.

          Being with Marth had forced him to remember his place in society, so much further down on the chain than the Prince was.  Exiled as they were, their ranks had fallen and were now technically void, but Roy couldn't help but feel inferior to Marth, supposing that it was normal for a person of common birth.  But why did the Prince feel something for him in matters of the heart?

          "Yes!  Say my name, dammit!"  Marth's voice rose to an angry shout.  Suddenly, he didn't care if Rowen heard what he had to say or not.  "I'm not going to punish you for it!  I can't!  We're equals out here, don't you see that?  You see this blood?  It's no longer royal.  Don't you understand, Roy?  I care about you.  And if you gave me half a chance, I could probably love you.  But you're too wrapped up in your pride and inferiority to even care!"

          "Equals…" Roy repeated, clenching and unclenching a fist and trying to keep his emotions under control. "And what if I gave you a chance?  What if I _wanted_ to give you a chance?  What would happen?  I tend to think of the kingdom more than of myself in situations such as these because it is what I serve.  What would Altea think of a King with a male consort?"

          "Do you not believe that my Kingdom is always my first thought?  Because it is." Marth's voice became quiet again. "All my life, I've have done nothing but the best for my country and for my people.  And where has it all gotten me?  Exile.  I gave everything and at the first sign, they betrayed me and cast me away like an old boot.  I don't _care_ what they would think.  Just because I am King, does that mean that I cannot love as I choose to love?  Do the laws of a country governing the right to marry whomever you desire not apply to the monarch who upholds them?"

          The teen looked away, biting his lip.

          "Fine…  Then will you answer my other question?"

          Marth turned and looked at Roy. "I don't know.  It depends on what you want."

          "What _I_ want?  I," Roy's voice lowered so that Marth could not hear it. "…I…I'll think about it."  He finally whispered.

          "Thank you."  Marth said softly.  He walked past Roy and touched his arm softly before going into the house to bind his wound.  

          Rowen stepped foreword, absolutely no expression on his face at all.  For a change, he was neither joking nor serious.

          "Well, I was almost sure you were going to kiss and make up," he said, walking up to Roy. "Arm yourself.  I'm going to see if you're any good, Boy."

          Roy's attention snapped to Rowen's face and he raised his sword quickly.

          "I am _so_ tired of you interfering with my personal matters…  Why do you feel that you must make a witty comment on everything?!"  He yelled, taking a hard swing at the mage. 

          Rowen's lips quirked and he easily blocked the ex-General's blow with his large sword.

          "Alright.  Tell me with your sword."

To Be Continued…

Xan:  Bwahaha!  Another cliffhanger, but this one is my fault!  So blame me!  *giggles*  That had a little more action than the last few chapters, but you like that, right?  Heh!  Hope you liked it!

Vallen: Whew… *wipes sweat off forehead* That was a pretty tense chapter. Did you think so? *shrug* I did… See you next time on… *coughs and just leaves* Heh…


	17. Learn

Fubuki no Kaen

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes: Vallen: I ended up finishing the typing on this one, but blame both of us for the VERY long delay. Thank you for flying with us on F.no.K Airlines, fasten your seatbelts, and enjoy the ride.

Xan: Xan: *bows* I'M SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG!! I thought I would have time to type it up and I didn't! Gomen nasai!

Thanks to: Li Kayun (You know, you are almost always the first person to review! Isn't that neat? And don't worry, we don't plan on being mean to Roy forever), Amphitrite (Thanks! I really enjoyed writing Marth's little speech… It's so cute! And I'm not sure, Roy's kind of being a stupid-head… *gigglesnorts* Oh, Vallen's gonna kill me for that…), Boethas (Yes! Attention to detail! We really do try to do that for the sake of y'alls' reading pleasure. Good to know we're succeeding. *giggles* "Baited breath…" cool!), Sinnatious (Thanks! The name thing was all Vallen, so the credit for that goes to her. And as for Roy's fire powers, he WILL get them, but just not yet! So just be patient, okay? Oh, and all the reviews do WONDERS for our self-esteem. That's why we love you guys!), YoshiMars (Always good to hear from you! Yeah, I was really happy with how the dialogue turned out, so I'm glad people liked it. *jumps up and down excitedly* Yes, draw us fanart! Please!!), LiL PriNCeSs Me (Mmm… Xan loves to write fighting scenes! They're what I live for, dahling! Yes yes, we're converting people to MarthRoy-ism!), Pichu*Star (Yeah, we're constantly amazed at the number of reviews. We never thought our little fic would be that popular! Not that we're complaining. *laughs* Basically the entire fic is about the contrast between Marth and Roy, it seems. And yes, it made perfect sense! They were under lots of emotional pressure!), Tikimoof (Heh… Yeah, poor Roy. But he'll be fine. He's a tough little brat! *hisses and grabs her Ring Wraiths possessively* Mine too! How about we share? We can have… 4 ½ Nazgul apiece… ^_^;;) Kyuusei (I hope all the chapters are interesting! Oh well, glad you liked that one. And I think everybody's pretty much figured out that Roy gets magic too… Clever readers! Not that it wasn't obvious… Oh well…), Poregon (Thanks! Glad you liked it!), Morias (Ooooh, an EPIC! I really like the sound of that! It makes it sound like F.no.K. is a movie! Oooh, cool thought… And thanks for the compliment on the battle scene - I really work hard on those, so I'm glad people appreciate them), Dark Comet (Honey, if they die, how are we gonna write the sequel? There's no way! And I'll talk to Vallen about posting a little italics thingie or something for y'all…), Belldandy (Wow! That is so cool! Gah, I should probably print it out too, but I don't have the time… *sniff sniff*), Nari Aizawa (Yai! You said LURV! That is so cool! [Xan's mom uses that word constantly] And I think Vallen reviewed your fic for us!), Asudem (*evil laughter* Heh… But having them kiss would be so un-evil! And yes, more battle scenes coming up! And when will the cliffhangers stop? When the fic ends, that's when! *evil laughter*), Sami Sasamy (*innocent* Marth and Roy together? Whatever gave you that idea? Heh… And no, you didn't write anything wrong. What gave you that idea?)

Marth's eyes watered as he sat in the cabin, using thread and needle to stitch up the long gash that Roy had made in his chest. It hurt like a bitch, but he had endured worse in his lifetime. Much, much worse. This had been one of Trave's favorite games to play with his slave-Prince. He would cut Marth with a knife that was just dull enough to cause pain and draw blood and then sew the wounds back together again while watching Marth writhe in agony. Long, thin, nearly invisible scars criss-crossed his chest, back arms and legs. He had kept them hidden both from himself and from Roy, hoping that his General companion would not notice them. 

With slightly trembling hands, Marth snipped the thread and lay back down on his cot, eyes closed and feeling very tired. As always, showing his emotions so openly had taken quite a bit of effort and that combined with the battle itself _and_ the amount of newfound mage energy that he had been expending over the last few days had severely depleted him. He struggled to keep his eyes open, failed and fell into a deep, deep sleep.

Roy groaned and got up from the ground for the hundredth time, picking up his sword once again. He grasped it tightly with both hands and glared at Rowen with a shake of his head to get some of the snow off.

          "Have you had enough yet? You're just lucky I haven't cut you into tiny pieces for sardines yet- When are you going to give up?" The formidable mage-hermit asked.

          "I won't… Not until I'm done. Rush me again. I think I've got your charge figured out…" Roy growled tiredly.

          Rowen shrugged and pushed his hair back before running towards the ex-general once again. And to his surprise, the teen actually blocked his initial attack.

          "Ha. I told you," Roy said.

          The brown-haired mage smiled the tiniest of smirks and hit Roy with the hilt of his blade, enough to send him backwards to the ground again. He stood over Roy, his large sword slung over one shoulder.

          "I give up, you're too strong for me. I'm going inside," Rowen said before turning and going inside. He didn't want to ruin the boy's pride too much.

          _'He lives to mock me!'_ Roy thought angrily, forcing his body to get up again. His omnipresent scowl spread across his face as he trudged back inside.

          _'Marth, what are you doing? Unless you give me a good reason why I should let you sleep, I'm going to wake you up. I'm supposed to be a stern teacher, correct?'_ Rowen's thought-voice plowed through the exiled prince's subconscious.

          Marth awoke with a gasp, sitting straight up in the cot he had been sleeping in, eyes wide and nails scratching at the collar that was no longer around his throat. The ex-prince's eyes were wild beneath his unruly blue hair and his face pale. He had torn at his stitches in his sleep, reopening the wound on his chest.

          "Master?" He whispered in a hollow voice, still not comprehending where he was.

          Rowen frowned, pushing Marth down gently so that he was lying on his back again.

          "Relax, Marth…" He said in a low, soothing voice. "You can go back to sleep."

          The mage thought it best to leave his trainee alone now, the stress level he was under much higher than he expected. Rowen placed a hand over Marth's wound and concentrated on his small amount of healing power to close the wound.

          A silent spy watched through a crack in the door and frowned, but tried not to be concerned for Marth. Roy looked down at the ground and turned away, going to sit on the couch. The auburn-haired teen sighed and tried to relax his aching body.

          Marth did as Rowen commanded, closing his eyes and drifting back into unconsciousness. A cool tingling feeling on his chest relaxed and soothed him, releasing some of the tension that had built inside of him.

          Rowen turned away and exited the room, glancing at Roy as he did so. He stood there for a moment before speaking in the voice he had used when they first met.

          "Slaves, hm?" He questioned, pulling out a thick book and opening it.

          "Why do you want to know about that?" the teen replied tersely, not in the mood to talk with the mage.

          "He is my pupil. I have a right to inquire about his health."

          "Look, neither of us wants to talk about that, so just leave me alone."

          The amethyst-eyed man was silent for a moment, and then turned to go to his own room.

          "You're the only one that knows what he went though and he needs your help. I suggest you be of some emotional help for once and go in there." With that said, he walked out.

          Roy's eyes narrowed and he watched Rowen leave. He sat there for a few moments before getting up slowly and entering the room he and Marth shared. He sat on the cot next to the ex-prince's, staring at the troubled look on his face. The teen sat there for the longest time until he fell asleep in that position.

          Marth awoke with a small scream, sitting straight up once again in the cot. He covered his mouth with his hands, stifling the noise and looked around with wide eyes.

          The ex-general had woken up at the first sound, staring at Marth in surprise. Then his face relaxed and became unreadable.

          "I thought you had gotten over that already."

          Marth buried his face in his hands. Now Roy thought he was even weaker than before.

          "Sorry…" He whispered. "Nightmares."

          "Don't apologize to me, why would you do that? I repeat myself: I thought you had gotten over it already."

          Marth was silent for a long, long time.

          "I've never gotten over it," He answered at last, his voice barely above a whisper. "Even after seven years, I've never gotten over it.

          "Don't you mean a week or so? You're starting to scare me now- Snap out of it."

          Marth shuddered.

          "No, I mean seven years." He whispered. "I was… abused, tortured when I was young, like Trave tortured us. I was just a child. He tied me up and did… horrible things to me…" Marth spoke as if he could not stop, telling Roy how he would be alternately fucked and beaten by his captor until he would black out; how Marth was taught to use his hands and mouth to further his partner's pleasure and forced to do so against his will; how his captor would do other unspeakable things to him. When at last he had run out of words, Marth placed his head back in his hands, his chest heaving with exertion.

          "I had blocked it all out… I had forgotten it all… And being sold to Trave brought it all back… The nightmares that would leave me hoarse… And now it's all worse."

          "Look," Roy snapped sharply, clenching a fist. "You just got a wonderful opportunity that could change your life, for the better! And now you're wasting your time, drowning in things that already happened! And we're talking _years_ ago, your Highness! How am I supposed to follow and look up to someone who can't persevere and _get over_ their problems?! Ever since I was little, I wanted to look up to you, but now I'm not seeing the same things I used to see…"

          "Why? Why in the hell of hells would _you_ want to look up to _me?_ You, Roy, the High General of all Altea wanted to look up to me. Why? Because I was a prince?" Marth's attitude switched abruptly. "What did you see? What was I to you then?"

          "I was little. I would be in the castle and I would see you with your mother sometimes. You were calm, quiet, and collected- I guess I admired that. Then I was shipped off to training and I wanted to serve someone like that some day. That's why," the teen explained, his voice strong and unwavering. "It may seem stupid to you, but it wasn't to me. Now why aren't you taking advantage of this new gift you have?"

          Marth closed his eyes for a moment before looking back to Roy, his eyes cold and empty.

          "Was it a shock to learn that the Prince you looked up to is in reality at coward? And if you recall correctly, the last time I practiced with my powers, you got quite angry. So now if you'll pardon me, I'll excuse myself and cease disrupting your sleep with my own petty problems. I'm sorry for not living up to your expectations." With that, Marth got up and left, not bother to hide his shaking knees. He went into Rowen's study, locking the door behind him. As soon as he did, livid anger made his eyes burn blue in the darkness.

          "Damn you, Uncle…" He hissed, gathering all the magical energy within him and collecting it in his hands, which were glowing blue. "Damn you for ruining my life…"

          Massive thunderheads gathered in the sky outside, filling the air with rumbles of thunder and forked lightening. "And now I'm going to ruin yours…" 

          In Altea, at the royal palace, Gaimen was awakened rudely by an icy gust of wind sweeping though the entire castle, throwing open every door wide. Guards and servants ran around in a panic, wondering what in the world was going on. Gaimen threw his robe over one shoulder, running out onto this balcony to discover with utter shock that large pieces of hail were falling from a clear sky. He ducked to avoid being hit in the head by an especially large one.

          _'What in the hell…?'_

To Be Continued…

Vallen: *laughs evilly* Oh, how I enjoy writing the "to be continued…" Oh, and I like hearing which lines you liked from the chapter the best. It gives great insight!

Xan: That's it! And I PROMISE to get the next one out sooner, I SWEAR!!


	18. Never

Fubuki no Kaen

(MarthRoy)

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes: Vallen: Ah, so fast already? I couldn't resist typing this one.

Xan: Yes, yes… Poor Marth. *sniff*

Thanks to, with vallen speaking: (From the last chapter: pokennicole (It's a deal. If you learn to use photoshop and we type faster… We'll both be happy!), Marth-Roy-Fan (Love your nick… They're getting together! Eventually!), Hiru Kirugami (strange… A number of people thought they were going to kiss too… Death to Mr. G&W), The Flame Panther (*BLINK* Warcraft? Ooookay, whatever you say… Love your opinions, tho! Xan and I have no clue what Warcraft is even about…), Sake Girl Duelist (Confused… But okay… Wow, you sure did leave a lot of reviews.)) And now for the thanks for "Learn": Spade (Glad to have an old follower around! And about the fic-reading bit… I do that as well with the fics I read! Just can't contain myself!), Sinnatious (*drowns in the angst… and loves it too* We're keeping it up as best we can, wanting to please readers every time!), Asudem (O.O I'm glad SOMEONE liked the fact that Roy wasn't sympathetic. It's part of his character…), YoshiMars (We are SO glad that you guys like Rowen so much… Really!  So, now you see why Marth always acted so cold and quiet all those times… And still.), Li Kayun (Ha. Yes, I keep telling Xan that Marth is a "One-Man Soap Opera"… And she just hits me.), Mel (*saves Marth from suffocation* Heh. Thanks for the extra-long review and you are quite welcome for Marth's character. Xan loves him that way too!), LiL PriNCeSs Me (Heh. We know you secretly hated the ending… Cliffhangers, cliffhangers…), turquoisefox (Hello fellow group member! I can't really answer your question right now, but I can promise you that things WILL GET BETTER… the sun shall come up!!), VV (Noooo!! Please don't hate my Roy-chan!!), olashorty (Naw, that's okay. We care just as long as people read it and enjoy. Yes, Roy get thrashed because I am a horrible person. ^_^), PandaBear007 (Exactly! That's what you're supposed to say! Hey, I think we've brainwashed the readers…) Pichu*Star (Heh! Gaimen NEEDS to get hit with a hailstone. And I'm not a big fan of chocolate, so Xan can have all of it! Popcorn is my fave… But thanks! Mm.) kyuusei (Wow, you are the first person to say "Poor Gaimen", but I'm glad you added the "or, not."), Dark Comet (Nononono! We are not joking about the sequel! We have a title already!), and Valimalirit (*blinks* You don't like the fact that Marth and Roy love each other… eventually? *pouts* I am SO sorry… Oh, and you're on Xan's side… Me and my hordes of Roy fanatics will conquer, tho!).

Marth smiled evilly to himself, despite the fact that all his energy was being poured into his mage power, which had now gathered in a gigantic force around him. The entire room was glowing blue because of the power that was gathered in Marth's hands. Lightening had struck perilously close to the cabin several times.

          Rowen burst out of his room, robes flowing behind him, to find Roy standing outside his locked study, looking almost upset. With a strong gesture of his hand, the door to the study was flung open and the mage stormed inside.

          "Marth, _stop_!" He commanded.

          The icy ex-prince jumped at Rowen's words and tried to cut off the magic, but he had poured too much power into it and it and it took a moment for him to get it under control.

          He leaned heavily on a table, the blue light slowly fading from his body.

          "What were you thinking?! Or wait, don't tell me- You _weren't_ thinking at all…" Rowen was angry for the first time that they had seen.

          Roy hung back outside the room, looking at the two of them curiously with his face crossed in a frown.

          Marth closed his eyes painfully as the last of the excess magic had drained from him. Rowen's words hurt badly, but what was even worse was that Rowen was right- he _hadn't_ been thinking. A wave of nausea came over him and he sank to his knees, fighting the urge to vomit.

          The Mage shook his head, but walked over to where the young man was and put a hand upon his shoulders. Rowen acted as a strong foundation for Marth to hold onto if needed.

          Marth reached for Rowen's arm and tried to stand, but a second wave engulfed him and he fell again to his knees. He did vomit then, the little contents of his stomach coming up. Once it was done, he sat back and felt much better.

          "I'm sorry…" He whispered, face burning with shame so that he was glad that his hair covered it anyways. He wiped his mouth.

          "Do not do that again in my house," the longhaired Mage reprimanded. "Now just go to bed and sleep until I call for you again. If you don't, I _will_ put you under a sleeping spell."

          The exiled prince nodded, slowly getting to his feet, legs trembling. He began to walk carefully to the room that he and Roy shared, feeling ashamed but still strangely satisfied. His power was indeed great. He fell asleep in his cot, again deeply asleep.

          Roy watched the weather Mage sit down at his desk with a heavy, leaden sigh and rub his temples. The teen turned away and left in the direction Marth had went.

          _'Already sleeping,'_ He commented inwardly.

          This time, Roy stood hesitantly over the blue haired man before climbing into the small bed with him. He made sure their bodies were touching as less as possible, but would be there if Marth had another nightmare.

          Marth felt warm, only it wasn't an unpleasant kind of warm. It was soothing, like a cool wind.

          He opened his eyes and found that he was lying in bed next to none other than Roy himself, his arm draped across the boy-general's chest and his head resting on his shoulder. Roy was still quite asleep.

          Instinctively, Math kept very still and very quiet. He had no idea if Roy had meant to do this or not, but if he hadn't and he woke up and caught Marth snuggling up to him like a lovesick girl… Marth winced. He didn't even want to _think_ of his general's anger.

          But… As the prince lay there, watching Roy's sleeping face, a feeling of content washed over him. He had often watched Roy as the general had slept, when they had been slaves at Trave's manor. He admired Roy's beauty, his sculpted face, soft hair and smooth, flawless skin… Marth had never thought himself attractive, despite his throngs of admirers.

          Marth caught himself staring at Roy's lips and scolded himself, but he couldn't help it. The feel of those lips against his with the taste of blood was branded into his memory.

          Slowly, ever so slowly, Marth moved so that his face was barely an inch from Roy's. He hesitated for only a moment before pressing his own lips to Roy's in a soft kiss.

          _'Please don't wake up. Please don't wake up.'_ He prayed.

          The prince's prayers were answered when Roy did not stir, lying completely still except for the rise and fall of his chest with his light breathing. Math was lucky that the auburn-haired teen had been worn out from sparring the other day.

          "Mm…" the teen murmured softly, the only audible noise he made.

          Marth broke off the kiss and settled back into his former position, with his head on Roy's shoulder. If the general exploded at him in the morning, so be it. He could have one moment of happiness like this. A small smile curled Marth's lips and he remained very, very still as he waited for Roy to wake up.

          The boy-general did wake up a little while later, rolling over as he did.

          _'Uh… Feel so sore… Cursed old man,'_ He thought incoherently and then glanced over at Marth, sleep in his blue eyes. "You awake?"

          "I'm awake," Marth said softly, glad that Roy hadn't noticed anything… yet.

          Roy shook his head and sat up, brushing his hair out of the way. Then he blinked in surprise and looked at his surroundings… Himself. Marth. Bed…

          "Wait, what am I doing in bed with you?" He questioned, then paused, remembering something. "_Oh._"

          The ex-prince had slipped out of the bed quietly while Roy had gotten over his shock. Now he pulled on his tunic and ran his hands through his tousled blue hair.

          "Thank you for staying with me last night," He said quietly before going off to find Rowen.

          The weather Mage wasn't in the kitchen and Marth hesitated a moment before knocking softly on the study door. Rowen had ordered him to sleep until called, but since he was already awake, there wasn't much he could do.

          _'Yes, Marth?_' came Rowen's gruff voice in the ex-prince's head. _'Come in.'_

          The door opened with a loud creak, revealing the brown-haired mage seated at his desk, surrounded by books. He looked expressionlessly at Marth.

          His trainee entered the room, guilt and shame pressing heavier upon him with each step until he stood directly across from Rowen.

          _'Please accept my deepest apologies, Master Mage. I am aware that I acted badly and foolishly to use my powers for my own personal vengeance, especially when my training isn't anywhere near complete and I'm aware that I abused my privileges as both your student and a guest in your home. I am ready to submit myself to any punishment you deem fitting.'_ He Sent, head bowed and face formed into an icy mask.

          There was an uncomfortable silence in the room before Rowen's judging amethyst eyes rose to meet Marth's.

          _'You speak well. You'll make a great king one day, Marth, but now, I am glad that you have thought your mistake over and realized the consequences. Your first punishment is a full day of non-stop training with me, and the second, _after_ you've done the first, is to spend some time with your companion.'_

The Mage's thought-voice was hard, but not unkind, and his tone was forgiving, but had the hint of a warning to tell the blue-haired young man not to pull a stunt like that again.

          Had Marth been anybody else, he'd have flinched. An entire day of continuous training with the mage was punishment indeed and Marth was only too aware that Rowen was not going to go easy on him.

          _'Rowen, I understand the training, but why would you command me to spend time with Roy? What's the purpose?'_ He asked, a little confused.

          _'I'm sorry, but I do not want the emotional unrest in my house any longer. Either you two come to terms or you face me. I don't know how I'm supposed to train a young man who always has other things on his mind, aside from what I'm teaching. Get your problems fixed after we train, though…'_ Rowen stood, dressed for heavy training in a pair of black breeches, sturdy boots and a deep green tunic.

          _'We begin now.'_

          The training was long and difficult and Marth's apprehension was more than justified by Rowen's rigorous methods. By the end of the day, he was exhausted and sweaty, yet triumphant. He hadn't asked to stop nor slowed the pace once. Gratefully, Marth drank the water that Rowen offered him.

          _'You know, I rather like this all-day training. Perhaps we shall do it often, not that I know it works and the results are to my liking,'_ Rowen Sent, leaning against a tree. He too looked tired, but happy as well.

          Marth winced inwardly, but remained passive and icy.

          _'As you wish, Master Mage.'_

          The older man dismissed Marth with the incline of his head.

          _'You may leave, Good Student.'_

          The exiled prince began to walk off, then stopped.

          _'Master, can I train all night in addition instead of going to Roy?'_

          Rowen's surprise could be felt though their mindlink.

          _'Hey, I thought you two were trying to establish a relationship.'_

          _'He hates me. A blind man could see that he hates me. It's stupid to pine for someone who wouldn't give you the time of day under normal circumstances.'_ Marth's voice became soft. _'That kiss was a fluke.'_

          He turned and walked to the stables, where it was quiet and alone.

          But it wasn't that way for long. Rowen followed him there, stopping at the doorway. The mage put a hand on the black mare, smoothing out her hair.

          "You have to think about this rationally," He told the ex-prince. "I mean, what is it going to take for you two to love one another? Are you just following your feelings and not using your head? You're a young man, Marth; perhaps you shouldn't follow your heart wherever it leads you. I think you should reconsider this whole thing."

          "I'd settle for friends. He said we were once and yet he still can't stand me." Fatigue crept into Marth's voice. "Please leave me alone. I just need to think."

          "Fine. I was only trying to give you my advice," Rowen replied tightly, then turned on his heel and left Marth to his own silence.

          Roy's horse snorted and stamped a hoof with a snort, exhaling air from her nose, almost in annoyance. The black mare tossed her head and stepped forward to snuffle Marth's hair, seemingly looking for hay.

          Marth patted her nose with a sigh.

          "What is it with you horses and my hair? You both seem to think its food."

          Cloud walked over and sniffed in Marth's hair as well, nibbling on it lightly. He then turned to Roy's mare and nuzzled her affectionately. She nuzzled the grey stallion back and they stood side-by-side, content in each other's company.

          Marth watched them and felt his heart grow heavy. He hugged his knees to his chest, staring blankly out at nothing. He knew what he had to do.

          _'I'll never speak of love again,'_ He thought.

To Be Continued…

Vallen: Whee! Now you HAVE to admit that this chapter was cute! Come on… *puts on a gypsy costume* I can read your thoughts… You thought it was cute…

Xan: Hope you liked it!


	19. Silence

Fubuki no Kaen

Authors: Xan and Vallen

Rating: R

Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with eventual yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…

Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.

Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)

Notes: 

Vallen: Yo, this is us! What's happenin'? I realize that it's been a long time, but we've been quite lazy… You may think that this chapter is a little boring, but bear with us! The next few chapters are going to be pretty intense… But not this one. Hey, be nice, tho… It took me a while to type up. This chapter is 18 pages (handwritten, that is) long! Also, there is a major time jump…

Xan: Sorry that this chapter took so long to get out, but maybe the double-length makes up for it! We're approaching the beginning of the end, so savor it y'all!

Thanks to: Li Kayun (Oh they will eventually. In the meantime, we have way too much fun writing it.), Sinnatious (Yes yes, greedy readers! And yes poor Marth. *sniff* Roy with a heart... nah. he's heartless! hee, i like this bowing thing...), Spade (Gah! Trying to turn the tables on US, eh? Well, I am very sorry but we have the upper hand! Yes, Rowen is annoying, but we love him anyways. He's just so cool!), Dark Comet (Huggle! Everybody huggle Marth and Roy! *huggles them* And thanks for the cookies! Yum!), LiL PriNCeSs Me (Yes, angst is fun. It's what Vallen lives for, but I'm a comedy fan myself. Weird, huh?), Valimalirit (Rowen SCARES you? *bursts out laughing* Sorry, I'm not laughing at you, but I find that hysterical. He is kind of a psycho old man... *giggle*), Morias (Yes people are beginning to put pressure on us to get them together... I guess we can only string you guys along for so long, eh? and they have earned it! Poor babies! Hee... Roy has better lines 'cause Marth doesn't say anything. *giggle* the silent type...), Spanish Ninja Sneasel (Wow, thank you so much for that epic review! Your analysis of the fiery personality fits both Roy and yourself very much [at least in my humble opinion] and we're always happy to let you babble! We love it in fact! Roy can be a sweetie, he just never does. Stupid boy. And you're very welcome! We try to write for you guys the way we like to read stuff, so we're so glad that you enjoy it! [and thank you very much for saying what I could not. Thank you thank you thank you]), Pichu*Star (Yes, very kawaii! And thanks for that bit about the horses! That was my own little personal Xan-touch. *watches vallen inhale popcorn* Wow, I think you just got a new best friend. And thanks for the chocolate!), Pissed off (Wow. I'm really sorry you feel that way. I respect your opinion and your thoughts on our work, but there's really no reason to get uncivil about it. Yes, we care very deeply about Roy, contrary to what you implied but these last few chapters were just a little Marth-centered. Roy is the focus of more later on. So if you be patient, you'll get what you want.), BLW, GoggleGirl + Black Bandit (One of the best fics on the site! Thanks! Hope you like the rest of it!), Belldandy (Yes, Marth is kind of like that... he feels responsible for everything. Stupid projects! Don't the teachers know that fanfiction is so much more important!), Klar (Aw, I'm sorry but it's gonna be winter for a while longer! But things heat up soon. *nudge nudge wink wink to Vallen* HEE! And I'm sorry you didn't know we updated! We try to spread the word, but some people miss the memo. *drools* Yes, red hair is sooo sexy... even tho I'm a marth fan. *drools*), Marth-Roy-Fan (*is hugged* eee! hugs!), YoshiMars (Yes, a Marth fan AND a Rowen fan! We luvs you! It was a very cute chapter, although not so great for marth. it gets better for both of 'em later tho.), The Flame Panther (Hey, I know what Warcraft is! Sorta... Glad you liked the chapter!), GSfailure (pathetic? Oh well i'm glad you changed your mind... More and further proof that FNOK is addicting! bwaha!!), chibi fairy (well, all good things must come to an end, but not any time soon I promise! yay, we're in yer top three! hooray!!)

          Two months passed while Marth and Roy lived in Rowen's cabin. In that time, the Prince and the General did not speak one word to each other. Neither of them really knew why, but that's just the way it was.

          While Marth's mage training with Rowen developed, Roy took the time to go out in the woods to train himself, touching up on his swordplay. And on days when the cold was unbearable, he spent them shut up inside the room. He was not inclined to speak with Marth and it seemed the same way with the other young man.

          One night, Rowen and Marth headed in from a long day of exercising the ex-prince's abilities. The Master Mage had a look of severe concentration upon his face as he took out another book and flipped through the pages quickly.

          "Marth, I have nothing left to teach you," He said firmly.

          Marth started, looking at Rowen with faint surprise.

          "Surely I cannot have learned everything there is to know about magic in a mere two months, Rowen," He said.

          "That's right, you haven't, but I have come to the extent of my teaching ability. When I went through training, so very long ago, I went to a specialized school, but they've done away with those and I am unable to teach you the most difficult magic I know," the middle-aged magic user explained with a sigh. "It would take several years for you to learn all I know, and I don't think you have that much time to sit around and watch Altea be corrupted."

          Rowen let out another heavy sigh and looked tired all of the sudden. Then he glanced up at his pupil, noting how much he had changed under his direction during the months.

          Marth had grown since he had arrived nearly dead on Rowen's doorstep, both in physical and magical strength. He had put on muscle and lost that gaunt, scared look that he had acquired as a slave in Trave's castle. By this time, his hair was long enough to pull back into a short horsetail, which he wore frequently. His face, however, had not lost its typical expression of ice. His powers had increased quite dramatically, as had his control over them. He could perform several feats of non-ice magic now and his own particular brand of magic was much stronger.

          Now Marth's face tightened.

          _'No, I do not. My country is dying in the hands of my uncle. I can hear it cry to me.'_ He picked up Falcion and sheathed it. _'It's time for it to stop.'_

          _'You are everything I could have hoped in a pupil, Marth. Thank you for allowing me to train you… When do you wish to leave? Granted, I will supply you with all that you require and a map with the quickest route to the capital.'_

_          'Thank you for teaching me, Rowen.'_ Marth looked into the man's amethyst eyes with his own deep blue, gratitude shining in them. _'I thank you for everything with all my being. As for our departure, I need to speak with Roy.'_ He paused, hesitant to talk to the boy-general after so long.

          "Hm." The hermit mused, glancing in the direction of the room, then back to the exiled prince. "You're sure you want to talk with him? I can do it if you'd like."

          _'I would appreciate it, Rowen,'_ Marth said gratefully. '_I don't think either of us is ready to break the silence between us…Yet.'_

          Rowen snorted.

          "I understand. What would you like me to say to the brat? I swear, he'd better not yell at me again or I just might have to delay your leaving," he said, half-joking.

          _'He's not a brat. He's just temperamental.'_ Marth told him, voice even quieter than usual. _'Ask him if he would be ready to depart fairly soon.'_

          "No problem," the mage agreed, and then walked out.

          Rowen knocked once on the door and walked in to find Roy sharpening his sword vigorously on the floor. The teen looked up at him quickly, wanting to know the reason for the intrusion. Roy had not changed much during the time they had been at the hermit's, but his hair had grown longer and darker, so his headband was even more useful than before. The auburn locks tended to grow more in the front, so his eyes were hidden some of the time, but the fire in them had not gone out- It was brighter.

          He was wearing a simple pair of slim black breeches and a heavy wool dark red shirt that had been Rowen's, so it was obviously too big, but kept him warm. He put his sword up and stared at the mage.

          "What?"

          "Marth would like to know if you would be ready to leave soon."

          "Leave?" Roy's eyes shined happily and he smiled his first small smile in months. The teen almost looked like a normal boy just before he composed himself back into the general. "Tell him that I can leave whenever he wants."

          The amethyst-eyed man nodded and left to relay the message. He didn't like playing a messenger, but this was a special case.

          _'I heard. You don't need to tell me.'_ Marth told Rowen before the Mage had gotten too far. _'Please tell him that I intend to leave early tomorrow.'_

          Rowen stopped in mid-walk and turned back to Roy.

          "He wants to leave early tomorrow morning. I suggest you prepare your horse and I shall give Marth the supplies you'll need." Then he left for the final time.

          The auburn-haired teen watched the mage leave and snorted, sheathing his sword. He stood up and exited through the window, walking around the stable to his black horse.

          Marth made their supper that night, his and Roy's last in the little cottage. It was filling, but still strangely bittersweet. The exiled Prince had truly enjoyed his time here in the wildlands of Altea, but he knew that he had you leave and do what he had to do.

          Rowen was busy packing the supplies he could afford to give into packs that would fit nicely on the horses back. He included some bread, dried fruits and meat, a few changes of clothing, and some hunting tools. The mage entrusted Marth with a map and compass, explaining to him the route they should take.

          The boy-general took care of both the horses diligently, rubbing them down, then giving them a good brushing.

          "You've been an excellent hose so far," he told the black mare, recalling some childhood skill and braiding her forelock, along with some of her mane. Roy shifted his eyes to the grey stallion, his eyes narrowing slightly when he saw into the horse's eyes.

          "Are you jealous? I could braid you hair too, but I don't know if His Highness would like that. Stand still- I'm going to brush you some more."

          The teen moved over to Marth's horse, brush in hand, and started to comb the stallion's wild mane, untangling the knots that had accumulated over time.

          The mage closed his purple eyes for a moment, stopping in mid-sentence, then opened them to gaze at his pupil again.

          "You understand the path and road situation, correct? But if you get lost, there's always the compass and your instinct."

          Marth nodded.

          "I understand, but I have a feeling that I won't get lost. Like I couldn't get lost if I tried, as if I was being pulled…" He stopped, shaking his head. "I sound crazy. Thank you, Rowen."

          "No, it is not crazy. I expected as much from you and your power. You have been waiting, anticipating this even for so long, and now that you are so close, nothing can stand in your way," the wise mage told him, and then spoke once again, a glitter in his eyes. "I'd wish you luck, but luck is for people who need it.

          Marth gave him a rare, genuine smile with a hint of malice hidden deep within his icy cobalt eyes.

          "I'd wish _him_ luck if he didn't hate him so much." He stood up. "It's time to go. Roy is out in the stables already."

          Rowen sighed, straightened himself up, and then extended a hand for Marth to shake.

          "So it is. I won't lie and say that I won't miss you, but I do wish you well on your journey. Farewell Marth… Perhaps we shall meet again?"

          "That I am sure of," Marth replied, shaking Rowen's hand firmly. "Perhaps when I am King I shall summon you to the castle and make you break your hermit ways.

          The amethyst-eyed man let out a short chuckle.

          "Sure, sure… We'll see, Marth," he said, released the exiled prince's hand, and led him to the front door.

          "Go to your destiny.

          Marth inclined his head, seized Falcion and calmly walked away from the cabin and the mage, never once looking back.

          Cloud had somehow cajoled Roy into braiding his mane and was arching his neck proudly when Marth walked in the stable. His sharp eyes saw that Roy was ready to go and he immediately busied himself with adjusting and checking Cloud's tack. It took mere minutes and he swung himself up on his horse's back with a glance behind him to Roy.

          The former general did not meet Marth's eyes, but slung a pack on his back and mounted his own mare. Without a word, Roy dug his heels into the black horse's sides and cantered off. He settled at a fair speed so that Marth could catch up if he wanted to, for the ex-prince had the map and compass.

          It was in the small hours of the morning, so it was still quite dark. The only light was from the sun peeking over the ridges of the hills. Roy had been eager to leave for two months and now that they had, there was no bigger relief. The teen reminded himself that the winter was almost halfway through, so that brought him some comfort. He would have to stand the biting cold for a few more months, and then it would be over. But he knew Marth liked the weather…

          _'Hn.'_ Roy thought, hearing Cloud and the former royal ride up.

          "We're in the northern outskirts of the country, so we'll need to ride south. There's a village about two or three days from here where we can get more supplies and anything else that we may need." Marth said quietly, the first words that he had spoken to the general in over two months.

          "Acknowledged," the teen replied with a mental sigh. He hadn't done as much riding as he had wanted over the time that they had spent at Rowen's, so being on a horse for three days was going to hurt.

          They rode south all morning and all afternoon before mutually deciding to stop and eat. The exiled young men secured their horses and sat down to eat a simple meal of bread and dried fruit. Every few minutes or so, Roy would glance up from his food and look at Marth. He coughed and averted his eyes.

          "So… Your training… I trust it went well?" He mumbled.

          "Yes, it went well." Marth answered quietly, picking at his bread. "I hope those months weren't too boring for you…"

          "They were," Roy replied shortly, packing away the excess food that they had gotten out. "Do you want to camp here now or ride into the night and hope we find something?"

          "The town we're trying to get to isn't for a few more day and there's nothing between there and here. Rowen worked hard at isolating himself," Marth glanced down at the map. "And this looks as good as any to stay."

          "Fine…" Roy set to making a fire and succeeded after finding the right materials. He put up his bedding right next to it and crawled in.

          _'That was a lot of riding… I would be happier if we rode straight to the capital, but that's not humanly possible.'_

 _'No, it's not.'_ Marth thought in agreement. Then he jumped; realizing that Roy hadn't spoke aloud. He looked at him, seeing if Roy gave any sign of having heard _his_ thought. To Marth's relief, Roy didn't.

          _'I heard his thoughts without trying to…'_ He thought with amazement.

          The teen glanced at Marth quickly before closing his eyes. It would have been awkward to wish the ex-prince good night, so he didn't.

          _'God, why didn't he get the power to make it warmer or something? That would have been _so_ much more useful…'_

          Marth's eyes narrowed, hiding his hurt. He had _never_ asked for these powers and could certainly not choose them.

          _'They were certainly useful when I was saving your life,'_ Marth thought, and then stood with an inaudible sigh. Quietly, he draped his own unneeded blanket over Roy and returned to his place.

          The night passed slowly- maybe it was because they were eager to actually get somewhere and time was against them. But when morning finally came, they gathered their things, got on their horses, and set off.

          The exiled young men traveled at a fast pace, and by the time they reached the small town of Northwilde, they were nearly falling off their horses in exhaustion. This was the first mildly populated area they had been to in months…

          "We're here…" Roy said breathlessly, sliding off his own exhausted horse. They had walked a bit to save the horses, but time was of the essence so the two hadn't walked very much.

          Marth looked around the town. It was fairly large for a frontier village, boasting an inn, church and several small shops. People went happily about their business and children were playing in the streets. He pulled his hood up to shadow his face. It had been months, but somebody may still recognize him.

          "I'll take care of the horses if you get us a room." He said to Roy.

          "Sure." Roy thrust the reins into Marth's hands and walked tiredly up to the inn.

          It was a fairly old establishment, but showed signs of renovations. The teen walked in and a female voice called to him,

          "You lookin' for a room?"

          Roy turned and saw a commonplace-looking woman seated at a desk.

          "Yes… Two, actually," He said. He was _not_ going to be stuck in the same room with the ex-royal again. There had _better_ be two rooms open…

          "You're in luck. Would you like those now?" The innkeeper inquired, standing up. "Of course, there is a down payment."

          Roy sighed inwardly and gathered several coins out of his pack. He should have known that this would be expensive- the town knew that they could reel any weary customer in because there wasn't anything else for miles. After the teen was shown the rooms, he put his stuff in one of them, and then went looking for Marth. He put his aside exhaustion for the time being.

          Marth was still in the stable, giving the sweating and tired horses a good brushing before retreating to whatever lodgings Roy had secured for them. Yes, he was tired, but they were more important.

          "You were marvelous today. I'm sorry about working you so hard." He murmured, patting his loyal stallion fondly.

          The mare snorted loudly as if to say she wanted praise as well. Roy walked in at that moment, standing in the doorway.

          "I got _two_ rooms," He announced.

          "Excellent." Marth turned and stroked the mare's nose, murmuring to her as well before walking over to Roy.

          "That is very good. How long do you think we'll be staying here?"

          "I need at least a day to catch up on sleep and food, so you can count on that," Roy answered, handing Marth his own separate key.

          "That sounds good as well." Marth needed to catch up on rest as well, especially to replenish his magic. "The horses are fine. I'm going up to my room. I do not think it would be wise for me to show my face too much…"

          "I agree. We're on the second floor, okay?" Roy told him, walking up.

          Their rooms were right beside one another, and had a door connecting them, but the teen would most certainly keep that locked. He left Marth there and shut his door audibly.

          The ex-prince heard it and let out a small sigh.

          _'Do you still hate me so much, Roy?'_ He thought a little sadly.

          Marth lay down in bed, staring up at the ceiling. He was anxious and tired of hiding. He had been waiting far too long and now wanted to take back what was rightfully his.

          _'I am ready.'_

TBC…

  
Xan: *giggles* Like I said, the next chapter "heats up" quite a bit, you lucky readers. Not that I'm saying you should be on the edge of your seats or anything... *evil smile* 

Vallen: *yaaaaawn* Wow, that was long… I know that chapter wasn't as exciting as the rest, but we made it as long as possible so you guys would enjoy it! Oh, and a href=; a fanart I drew, inspired by a scene in this chapter. Its on our a href= Group/a, so if you're not a member… Maybe you would want to check it out? Hell, don't look at MY fanart! It's awful compared to some of the others! *laughs nervously* Alright, I'm going now. I apologize for any typos!


	20. Victim

Fubuki no Kaen

(MARTHROY)

Authors: Xan and Vallen

Warnings: One thing… Or, lots of things: This is a story with eventual yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…

Disclaimer: The characters of Marth and Roy, plus Altea, do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.

Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)

Notes: Vallen: We kinda rushed this chapter, because ff.net is a BITCH!! X_x Enjoy.

Xan: *giggles insanely* This is a fun fun fun chappie, so I hope y'all like reading it as much as we liked writing it!

Thank you: Sinnatious (Aw, depressed? We don't mean to do that... We'll try to be better! *bawls* We're gonna miss Rowen too!), Yoshimars (Yes, things heat up! They get quite toasty... *grin*), Dark Comet (Yay, we're glad that you guys liked the length. We decided to just get all the boring bit out at once, so here ya go. *is hugged* wai, i feel loved! *blinks* Hey, Marth and Roy are stuck in the closet! *gigglesnorts*), Chibi Fairy (Yes, kawaii little bishounen! that's them to a T!), Miru-Miru (Of COURSE we enjoy torturing you! Why else would we write this fic? Aside from our own twisted entertainment... bwaha!), Klar (Ac-tually, the Marth reading Roy's thoughts thing doesn't really go anywhere... I somehow failed to see the gold in that. Sorry! Maybe later!), tikimoof (Ack! I really did try that translation thing, but it didn't work! Sorry! *sniff sniff sniff* I'm gonna miss Rowen too! He's so wonderful! But he's a hermit and he has to stay hermited or whatever. But don't worry, this is not the end of him. *coughs*spoiler for the sequel*coughs*), Spanish Ninja Sneasel (Er, the weather doesn't warm up, but something else sure does! Keep reading! *evil laughter*), Marth-Roy Fan (Yep, it's finishing soon! But you can bet your bishies that there's gonna be a sequel! Vallen and I are addicted! And besides, we don't want hoards of angry fans after us... *cowers*), Lil PriNCeSs Me (Yay! I'm so happy that people liked the less-exciting chapters too because they're kind of vital and the characters need down-time too. Can't just be one battle after another all the time. They are human!), Sake Girl Duelist (Whoa, hard thing to give up! But there'll be lots of fighting later, so be patient!), Pichu*Star (Waiiii!! *nudges Vallen* You hear that! We SO need to get published! We've been thinking about that and we decided it would be very scary! Why aren't there pro fanfiction writers? *sniffs* That's what I wanna be when I grow up! Vallen and I would be zillionaires by now!)

Roy lay in his bed as well, trying to drop off into the depths of sleep. He thought it would have been easy, but his skin (for some odd reason) was itching and burning. He groaned and got up, intent on asking where the washroom was. Once downstairs, he was shown to a small bathing area- which only a few people occupied. The teen stripped and began to wash himself, scrubbing as his tingling skin.

          _'What's wrong with me? I don't have a fever or anything… That's just too strange…' _He thought to himself.

          When Roy had finished, he dried off and put his dirty clothes back on, feeling a little better. After gathering some firewood, he began to build a fire up in the small fireplace in his room.

          _'_Much_ better…'_ The auburn-haired teen said inwardly before settling back in bed.

          Three days had passed and Marth had managed to stay in his room essentially the entire time. The inn staff had been kind enough to deliver his meals after he explained that he was recovering from an imaginary serious illness. He trusted Roy to take care of their business.

          It was high noon, and the two young men were spending the day in their rooms once again. Roy had often wasted his days wandering around the small town, enjoying the feel of village life once again. It reminded him vaguely of his childhood. He had been out exercising the horses that morning, so after a quick lunch, he sat in the room, sharpening his sword aimlessly.

          That was when he heard the screams and shouts. The auburn-haired teen had thought that it had grown a bit too hot for a winter afternoon, but now it was painfully clear.

          "Fire! Fire!" He heard from outside his window.

          Roy ran to it and looked down. The entire first floor was enveloped in flames and people were scattered on the ground below, in chaos. Only then did he begin to panic…

          He opened the window roughly and threw his few belongings out of the window- his pack and his sword in its sheath. His heart rate increasing, he burst out of his room, greeted by a wall of thick, black smoke. Roy's eyes stung and watered, liquid trailing down his cheeks as he blinked through it. The smoke invaded his lungs and he coughed, covering his mouth with one hand.

          _'… Either I jump from a two-story building and break a bone or worse… Or I run downstairs and get burned… Damn,'_ The ex-general thought. Then his eyes widened in shock, slightly glazed from the smoke.

          _'Where's Marth?'_

          Marth had been sleeping intermittently all day and was woken up now by an oppressive heat settling over him like some sore of blanket. He coughed a few times and groaned, wiping sweat from his face before finally opening his eyes.

          The room was full of thick, acrid black smoke and dancing flames were licking at the walls and ceiling like fingers trying to tear them down. The heat was unbearably, choking Marth worse than the smoke. It filled his senses like a red haze, blinding and deafening him.

          He stumbled out of bed, gasping and choking in a failed attempt to get oxygen. The black smoke burned his throat and lungs so that each breath was excruciating. His eyes watered and his skin blistered as a result of the flames that surrounded him.

          "Roy!" He gasped through the smoke. "Help me!"

          The ex-general heard Marth's cry and burst into the blue-haired man's room, glancing all around for his prince. It was hard to think with all the pandemonium in the air, but he found a way through it. He went to Marth's side and handed him a strip of cloth.

          "Hold that to your mouth, close your eyes, and stay low. I'm going to get us out of here…" Roy told him, his voice shaky, and grabbed Marth's wrist tightly. The teen led him out and through the hall, careful of the flames.

          Marth held onto Roy, coughing and choking. Everything burned and he felt his strength being baked out of him. A sudden burst of flame blasted out and engulfed both of them. Marth let out a strangled yell of pain and fell to the floor, clutching at Roy with seared hands.

          Roy cried out in surprise and felt the fire on his body, but it did not hurt. The burning felt almost… nice. With the strength he didn't know he had, he hooked his arms under Marth's and pulled the ex-prince onto his back, beginning to haul him down the stairs.

          The fire was an overwhelming roar in his ears and he could no longer hear Marth's cries. They were almost down the stairs when the last few steps gave way under them. Roy landed on the scorching floor, feeling his skin hiss in contact with the fire. Marth was still on his back…

          "Marth… You may… get burned more, but we're almost there… We have to get through before the building collapses…" He panted, forcing himself to get back up.

          Marth didn't answer. The combination of the smoke and heat and fire had finally caused the icy prince to lose consciousness. The flames approached the two exiled warriors, encircling them in a deadly ring.

          The teen's heartbeat grew faster when he heard nothing from the royal. He adjusted the limp body on his back and started to run. The building collapsed.

          Pieces of burning wood fell all around them, but only a few hit and injured the two young men. Roy couldn't hear a thing- not even his pounding footsteps, the screams of the villagers, or the fire.

          The fire licked at his body and he felt it, but not the pain. Flames consumed him, but he would not let them get Marth. A blinding light exploded in front of his eyes when he shoved his way through the piles of burning and cracking wood, finally making it out of the burning wreckage. 

          Villagers greeted them, with their hands extended to help them. Roy felt Marth be pulled off his back and whirled around dizzily.

          "Fetch the water! He's caught on fire!" A man shouted.

          "… What?" Roy croaked, having not heard them (he had only seen their mouths moving), then gasped sharply when his body was doused in cold water. He fell to the ground on his knees, looking wildly around for Marth.

          The villagers had dragged the ex-prince aside and were trying to revive him. Marth's clothes, along with his body, were scorched and charred from the fire. His face was not visible, hidden by his longer hair, which was in tangles about his head. Several people surrounded him, gently applying salve on the ex-royal's fresh burns, to help the pain and speed up the healing process. They waved smelling salts in front of his nose and fanned fresh air to his face.

          Roy felt his face turn to the still-burning woodpile that was once an inn- He couldn't tear his eyes from it. He was quite a sight as well, the tips of his auburn hair burnt off, smudges of black upon his too-pale, white face. He looked like a fire victim who never got burned. The teen smelt like fire, as barely-visibly smoke floated off his body, and he breathed in raspy pants from lack of oxygen. Every one of his senses were in perpetual, unstoppable motion… Except for his hearing. Roy could hear nothing.

          He reached an outstretched hand towards the dying flames, looking very much like one of the undead. The fire jumped, shying away from him at first, then returned, almost as if it was exhibiting a curious nature.

          Roy's eyes widened and he pushed himself to his feet, stumbling backwards. Next, he raised his hands to his head, probing his ears experimentally. Nothing. He glanced around once again- they had not managed to revive Marth, but were picking him up. He stared at the villagers' mouths, moving, but making no sounds. The only sound he could even vaguely remember was the thundering road of the fire. The ex-general threw one last look at Marth before turning and sprinting off in the opposite direction in a confused panic.

          Marth awoke several hours later to find himself lying in a soft bed. His eyes opened slowly and he tried to push himself into a sitting position, only to be stopped by a sudden lash of pain from his hand. With a wince, he lay back down and raised his hand to find that it was wrapped in clean white bandages. His eyes widened slightly and he looked down upon himself.

          The young monarch's body was definitely worse for the wear. His hands and arms up to the elbows were bandaged, as were his legs/

          _'Roy, where are you?'_ He thought faintly.

          _'I've gone insane… First I escape a fire without getting a single burn, then there was that thing with the fire and it moving when I waved my hand…' _The auburn-haired teen thought miserably, holding his head in his hands. _'And now I hear Marth's voice inside my head, the first thing I've heard in hours…'_

          Roy sat on a large, thick branch in a high tree, away from the deep snow upon the ground. Night leered closer and the temperature dropped, but the exiled general's body was overrun with a strange fever. Sweat trickled down his face, wetting his body, hair and charred clothes. He trembled and shook from time to time, but refused to let himself grow weak.

          _'My mind is lost…But…I still have my duty to Marth… I must…'_ Roy thought of the blue-haired prince, probably barely conscious somewhere and hopefully being cared for by the villagers.

          He dropped down from the tree clumsily with a quiet groan and began to walk. There was little chance that he could find his way back to the small town, but he would try… And as he walked, Roy did not notice the snow melting under his bare feet.

TBC…__

Xan: *giggles* Well, that was fun! What happens next? Tune in next time for the next exciting chapter of... *dramatic music* Fubuki no Kaen!

Vallen: *point* Yeah, what she said… Yaaawn. Gah, no.. I'm not falling asleep! This chapter was exciting, dammit! Thank all you guys for your support…. *falls asleep at computer* 


	21. Real

Fubuki no Kaen

Authors: Xan and Vallen

Rating: R

Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…

Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.

Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)

Notes:

Vallen: Here we are again! I'm just gonna give you guys a quick hint: Most of this chapter is dialogue between Marth and Roy, and basically all the italicized type is Marth talking/thinking… Unless Roy's thinking too!

Xan: Hope y'all like this chapter as much as you liked the last one!!  
  
Thanks to: YoshiMars (*giggles* Yes, I knew I'd lead some of you on with that little statement. Bwaha! But it really does heat up from here... *giggle*), PandaBear007 (Thanks! Glad to keep pleasing you guys!), Klar (Nah, you're not gullible, I just like to play with you guys' heads, that's all. ^_^ Yeah, poor babies... *cheers at the PS* YES!), Dark Comet (*watches marth and roy through peephole* *giggles nervously* eheheheheh...), LiL PriNCeSs Me (*clams up* Can't tell ya! Maybe we're mean enuff to keep him deaf! Hopefully it'd help that attitude problem of his... *coughs and eyes all the Roy fans* Um, er... Like I said, we'll just have to see... er, hear... oh bad pun...), chibi fairy (You bet we will! You're stuck with us for quite a while, I'm afraid! *evil smirk*), Spectrum (Good to hear from you again! We were afraid you'd abandoned the fic when you left the group. But that's okay! We still love you! *giggles* Pyro Roy! Vallen liked that.), Sinnatious (Yeah, it's good that Roy-chan actually has stuff to do now. And give Vallen the credit for most of the fire- that was her deal. She's veddy good, no?), tikimoof (Heh yes, we DO listen to you guys griping at us! just kidding, we love y'all's requests, comments etc. Keep it up! *squints at the german* oy, i have enuff trouble with english, can't handle much else.), Sake Girl Duelist (*laughing like mad* Oh jeez, Vallen and I cracked up when we read your review! the "go roy, it's yer birthday" did it. Thanks for the comments and Link and Marth still kick a lotta butt! give 'em their due!), Treiz (Ooh, cool handle! sounds like trave, almost. *raises a brow at the rabid Roy fans* a-HEM, but Roy isn't the only one out there, you know! And of COURSE he gets his powers after they leave Rowen! It's cruel irony! 'cause we're evil people of course!), Miru-Miru (*cackles* Omg, you pegged us exactly! We actually DO sit there and say that... *nervous laughter* Kinda sad, ne? But we really do try not to be TOO bad about it... *blinks at the townsfolk* well, um... they're nice people! yay for them!), Asudem (Nononono! Don't boycott it! It gets better, I promise!), Pichu*Star (*evil grin* yes, expect the unexpected! We thrive on being unpredictable! *does funky dance* And thank you! We are constantly amazed that so many of y'all would come back and review our little fic! It's all to you! give yourselves a hand!), Belldandy (*feels the pain of a broken game system* Stupid PS1. Glad to help though!), Valimalirit (*blinks* SSBM and Spyro... works for me! I've never actually played, but I know lots of people who like it. Hope this helps with the boredom!), Marth-Roy-Fan (Thanks! Hope you keep readin!) Hiru K. (Thank you for the praise! And hopefully we shall!), Hooshi (well, we're so happy that you gave it a chance! we certainly hope that it's not boring! that would be bad... yes, they're both hot!)

Faintly, ever so faintly did Marth hear Roy's thoughts. Worry filled his mind as he saw Roy trudging through the deep snow, eyes glassy and body drenched in sweat.

          Biting back a whimper, the icy prince pushed himself up and out of the bed, wobbling unsteadily. Fortunately, his legs and feet weren't too badly burned and he could walk with minimal discomfort. After reaching out with his mind, he found with relief that there were no people in his immediate area. Then, using the stealth that he had acquired over the years, Marth slipped through the door to the night.

          The cold air washed over Marth, filling him full of new life and the snow felt soothing on his burned and mutilated flesh.

          _'Roy will be lost in this snow…'_ Marth thought, biting his lip. He began to walk, following the distinctive aura of Roy's mind. After he took a few steps, he discovered with surprise that he was walking on _top_ of the snow's crust. Shaking his head, he walked on. It wasn't long before he spied on auburn-haired figure in the snow.

          "_Roy!"_ He cried aloud and mentally.

          There it was again. Marth's voice in his head, but this time it seemed closer and less faint. Roy jerked his head up and saw the exiled prince only a short distance away, walking towards him. The tired and confused teen picked himself up again and started to run towards Marth, stumbling once or twice. He practically ran into Marth, clutching the taller young man tightly.

          "You're real…" Roy gasped, but was unable to hear his own voice. Deep confusion settled into his mind as he wondered how he could hear Marth's voice in his head, but not with his ears. Maybe it was something Rowen had taught him… Whatever it was, he was grateful.

          "Oh, you're here…" Roy sobbed in relief. "Help me…"

          Marth wrapped his arms around Roy, burying his face in his general's silky, frozen auburn hair.

          _'Roy…'_ He whispered, holding him. _'That's right, I'm here…_I'll help you…'__

The exiled prince tilted Roy's face up and gave him a gentle, reassuring kiss.

          _'What's happened?'_

          Roy froze as their lips came into contact, and turned his face away immediately after the kiss ended.

          "I'm so confused,' He whispered. "I don't know what's happening to me. I couldn't hear anything but the fire, and now I can't hear anything at all. How are you talking in my head? Tell me I'm not crazy, please… Why is my body burning?!"

          The teen pressed a hand to Marth's cheek, not in an affectionate manner, and shuddered at the difference between their skin temperatures.

          Marth blanched at the heat radiating from Roy's hand. It was hot, much hotter than any normal human's should have been.

          _'Stop,' He said, calmly pulling Roy's hand away from his face. __'You are not crazy; I'm talking to you with mindspeech. Rowen taught me how and I've been able to do it for months, but you didn't know. Come on, we need to get back to shelter and I'll explain everything to you. I believe I have an idea of what's wrong with you.'_

          Roy was quiet as Marth led the way through the snow, feeling shaky. He then became aware of water at this feet- Melted snow.

          "Marth…" He whispered, stopping quite literally in his tracks. Through the five-inch deep snow, there were small puddles of water at his feet. "I really want to get inside…"

          Marth glanced down at Roy's feet and his eyes widened slightly. 

          _'Roy, come here…'_ He picked the general up and held him, wincing because of his wounds. _'Please don't be offended. I can carry you faster than you can walk.'_

          About ten minutes later, they reached the stables of the demolished inn. It was plenty warm for Roy and there were no people around, which was exactly what Marth wanted.

          _'Here,' _he thought, setting Roy down gently on a pile of hay and sitting down across from him.

          The auburn-haired teen leaned forward and hugged his knees, wiping off a bead of sweat from his forehead.

          "You didn't have to carry me. You're injured enough as it is," Roy said softly, averting his eyes. He touched his own skin once again, his brows knitting together in a frown. "Am I sick? Am I going to die?"__

'_No, you're not sick. At least not in the way you think,' Marth paused for a moment before taking a deep breath. '_Roy, I think you have magical powers. It's the only logical explanation.'__

          "No!" Roy exploded, clenching his fists with his eyes bright and glaring. "That's ridiculous…"__

_          'It happened to me.'_ Marth replied calmly. _'And, while unlikely, there is always a chance that you have mage power. Do you have a better explanation?'_

          The teen hid his face and bowed his head to his knees, still clutching his legs tightly. From his body radiated denial.

          "This isn't happening to me," He said quietly. "Just you, only you… It's not possible."

          _'Roy, look at me,' _Marth commanded, '_Calm down. There are certainly_ worse things that could happen to you other than acquiring magical powers. And it's not for certain- just a theory. I'm going to give you a test, all right? It will determine whether you have magic or not.'__

          Marth gathered a bit of straw and cleared a space on the floor between him and Roy.

          _'A barn in probably _not_ the best place to do this, but I'll be able to control it.' Marth thought as he placed the bit of hay in the empty space. He stared at it, concentrating. Abruptly, the hay burst into ice-blue flames, which quickly faded to their proper color._

          _'Try to control the fire.'_

          Roy looked up at the fire curiously, the flames reflected in his bright blue eyes.

          "But… What if you're right and it gets out of control?" He asked. The fire wavered when there was no wind, but the teen was still doubtful.

          _'In any case, I'm still a more powerful mage than you and I'll be able to control it. My magic is that which puts out fires.'_ Marth replied, waiting for Roy.

          The boy-general still stared at the fire, unable to take his eyes off of it.

          "Hold it. I am _not_ a mage, so don't start jumping to conclusions!" He cried.

          Suddenly the fire leapt up to the ceiling of the barn, roaring loudly, and produced an intense heat. Roy jumped back in surprised, covering his ears and closing his eyes. He could hear _that._

The horses in the barn screamed and shied away, the whites of their eyes showing with fear. Marth scrambled up, ice blue power shimmering around his hands. The fire once again became that shade of blue and shrank back down to the height that it had been. Marth turned to Roy, the blue fading from his hands.

          _'Now do you believe that you have magic?'_

          "No… Well… You could have done that. I don't want to believe it, Marth. Can't we just forget this whole thing? I don't _want magic!"_

          Roy stood up, a look of contained pain on his face.

          Marth looked at him emotionlessly.

          _'It is not a matter of what you do or do not desire. The fact is that you have powers and if you don't know how to use or control them, you'll be a danger to yourself and everything around you. Now either you accept yourself for what you are, a fledgling mage and allow me to help you, or you remain in a state of denial and I train you anyways. Which would you prefer?'_

"I'm not a mage, Marth…" Roy protested weakly, avoiding the question. "It scares me." The teen stumbled over to the ex-prince and buried his face in Marth's chest, wrapping his arms around his torso.

          Hesitantly, Marth placed his arms around Roy, unsure of how Roy wanted him to respond.

          _'I know it's frightening, but I'll help you. You won't have to do this alone.'_

          There was a steaming hiss and Roy pulled away, startled. His eyes were strangely wide and bright, full of tears yet to be shed. But the salty droplets upon his cheeks were boiling and giving off a small amount of steam from their rolling tracks on Roy's feverish skin. The former general looked ashamed of himself and turned his head away quickly, fisting his hands in Marth's shirt for support.

          "How can you help me? Your power is of ice and cold…" He asked softly.

          _'And yours is of fire and heat. But Rowen taught me that the basis of all magecraft is the same. I can teach you how to control and use your power, but you'll have to refine it on your own.' _Marth slid a cool hand beneath Roy's chin and turned his head so that the ex-general was looking at him. _'Why are you ashamed you look at me? We have been together through hell and survived. You have no reason to feel ashamed of anything in front of me.'_

          Roy shook his head and met Marth's eyes briefly with a frown.

          _'I can't believe I'm doing this…'_ He thought privately.

          "Marth… **I've thought about it**."

          Marth felt his innards tighten as if a freezing cold hand was squeezing them.

          _'And?'_ He asked quietly, not allowing his face or his voice to betray his emotions.

TBC…

Vallen: Aha… Ee-hee.. Yes, we're evil. For those of you who are confused at what Roy was talking about in the end there, I'll explain. After they had the big fight and were arguing, Roy said: ""What _I_ want? I," Roy's voice lowered so that Marth could not hear it. "…I…I'll think about it." He finally whispered." So, that's what was going on. But… The answer is for another time! Later!

Xan: *DA DA DAAAA* OMG, what does he say?! I can't teeeeeeeeeell you!! *runs off cackling a la Wicked Witch of the West* 


	22. Summon

Fubuki no Kaen

Authors: Xan and Vallen

Rating: R

Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…

Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.

Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)

Notes:

Vallen: Weird chapter, really. But we'd like to know what you thought of the MILD LIME that I wrote mostly, but Xan helped a little. *point point* Yes, that's right. There is lime in this chapter. Two naked boys kissing!! If that's not your thing, don't read the latter half of the chapter. Don't worry, they don't have sex or anything- Just kissing. 

Xan: Xan was not available for this chapter.

Thanks to: pannybaby123 (Hey, I'm glad that you came here by recommendation. That's great and we're glad you enjoyed all 21 chapters), Leera the Elemental Mage (I can e-mail you chapter 16 if you give me your e-mail address. If you're not comfortable writing it here, send it to xan_vallen@cliffhanger.com), GSFailure (Yes, I do realize that people who write and do not have English as their first language are getting attacked. It makes me happy that they're writing, but they should put more effort into their stories, if at all possible. Thanks for not hating me), Miru-Muru (We love conspiracies), Favri the Fisher (Translate the title? Oh, we meant it to be "Blizzard of Fire", but there are many different translations), Spanish Ninja Sneasel (Aw… *hits ff.net* The computer cheated us out of a perfectly long review! GR!) Marth-Roy-Fan (Sorry you had to wait so long!) LilFilipinoGurl (Yes, kissing is very good and we're glad you're back! We forgive you for not reviewing. Just as long as you read and enjoy.) Sherrilyn (Speechless, really? I don't think it's THAT good… Xan and I both agree that it could go through the editing machine a few more times, but thank you for flattering us so much. Oh, and the POINT was to get your addicted… Don't be ashamed), darkness88 (Haha, we're probably already dead by now… And we love being called crazy! Say it again! ^_^), klar (Thank you very very very much for the fanart! Oh, and thanks for the compliment on the magic bit! That's great! We WANT it to seem real), Spectrum (Aw, sorry you had to do that… We're only a few more chapters away from the end), Valimalirit (Ha, yeah… Predictable. But Roy has fire in the game, so why not? WAIT, you don't like yaoi???!!! Why not?! I guess you're reading this for the story and the lack of yaoi is good, eh? Well, we'll be having a lime soon… Next chapter), RcA (Yes, we love cliffhangers… Oh, and Roy won't be that way forever. You're right, he's just scared), Lil Princess Me (The best chapter yet? Hold on a few more chapters, then decide… I think I'll have a poll on the group about that), Sinnatious (Well, that's why our e-mail addy is "@cliffhanger.com"… *appreciates being bowed too* But Roy having powers now is bad-ass! Glad someone agrees with me on that), YoshiMars (We love our evilness. We also didn't want to give any hints to the next chapter…), tikimoof (Sorry! Roy won't be that way forever….), Dark Comet (Marth and Roy, sittin' in a barn, got some hay and started a farm… ACK!), Malley (Nope. We don't use "naughty words" because they are un-tasteful. I do agree… Also, Xan is a prude when it comes to writing yaoi. -_-), Pichu*Star (Marth with help Roy in every way they can! They're a couple! And about the story and how much Roy is going to use his powers… You're right), hooshi (ROY IS SO HOT! He's a little young for me in this story… Sorta… But in the sequel… *whistles* Ooooh, boy…), and Sake Girl Duelist (*pulls out super soaker* Heheheheh… *sprays* Nooo! We don't want you to go sane!). And if I missed anyone, I'm sorry! FF.NET was being a bitch!

"And… Is that what you really want? You and I? At first I thought you were joking, but now… We've been together for so long, fighting, living and traveling… that I don't think I could do it without you," The teen confessed.

          The icy pressure in Marth's stomach suddenly left him and he felt an almost physical weight lift from his heart.

          _'I don't think I could either,'_ he said quietly. _'And yes, it's what I really want. I knew that it's what I really wanted before I told you the first time.'_

          That surprised Roy- So much that he was forced to take a step away from the real world. _How long_, he thought, had Marth been thinking about this? But on the other hand, there was this strange tingling in his chest, a feeling of warmth completely unlike the fever. It felt almost… nice to be thought about.

          But did he return the ex-prince's exact feelings? Roy felt _some_thing, but was unsure of how to decipher it. He had pushed it aside when they has been in danger, but now that the two of them were alone together, sharing a tender moment… What was it?

          "I understand," The auburn-haired teen said carefully. He had to choose his words wisely from here. "But… I know I'm being over-cautious- I can't help but wonder if you're _sure_ this is okay?"

          _'I don't let go easily… If I get involved with the Prince, who knows what I'm asking for…'_ Roy thought privately, but now that he knew Marth could use mindspeak… were his own thoughts safe anymore?

          _'It is fine. I told you, I have thought this through. It is true that I am the Prince and future King and that my life is not my own, but they cannot dictate who I choose to spend it with.'_ He stopped. _'But if my people do rise up and protest, I'd understand if you'd want to break it off.'_

          Roy clenched his teeth, narrowing his eyes. He held onto Marth's shirt tighter.

          "Do I look like someone who would give up?"

          Marth reached up and took Roy's hands in his own, squeezing them a little.

          '_No, you do not. I just wanted you to know that I wouldn't blame you.'_ Marth paused. _'Roy, I'm very tired. I don't think I can stay away much longer.'_

          "Where will you go to rest? Did the villagers take care of you?" The teen asked, his eyes moving carefully around the barn- there were some animals, supplies and tools, but not much else. "I apologize for not getting you out sooner…"

          _'No, it's all right. You did the best you could. I would be dead by now.'_ Marth looked around as well. _'I could stay here. The villagers have done all they can- my body just needs some time. I will be just fine.'_

          Roy was silent for a while, as his eyes portrayed deep thought. He reached up with one hand to probe his outer ear, hoping to feel of hear something. The blue depths filled with dismay when there was nothing. He stared at the small fire, which was now back to its original form.

          It was moving and twisting, the flames taunting him like a sadistic lover. Roy shuddered and made himself turn away.

          Marth gently untwined Roy's hands from his shirt.

          _'Roy, I'll help you in the morning, I promise.'_ He leaned back in the hay and allowed his tired eyes to slide slowly closed.

          "Alright… In the morning…" Roy repeated, sitting there motionlessly.

          A few moments later, he reached out and touched Marth's shoulder, lightly so not to disturb the sleeping prince. A warm, almost orange light encircled them both and Roy felt himself losing energy.

          _'What…?'_ The boy-general wondered in surprise as he grew more and more tired. He found the sense to pull away and fell back into the hay, eyes wide. He fumbled around to Marth's hand and held it, wavering somewhere between sleep and wakefulness till the morning.

          Marth awoke slowly the next morning to find that his hand was clasped tightly in his General companion's. Shifting his position, he used his other hand to jostle Roy awake.

          "Roy…"

          Roy's eyes moved beneath his eyelids, signs of activity, but he did not move. If he did, it was only a tiny bit.

          Marth bit his lip and jostled Roy again, squeezing his hand.

          "Roy, wake up. It's morning."

          The former general opened his eyes, comforted in the fact that someone was right there with him. It was comforting, but it was… Marth? _Now_ he remembered. He frowned as he saw Marth's lips moving, waving a hand towards his head.

          "What?"

          _'Oh, right…' _Marth switched to thoughtspeech. _'Wake up. It's morning now.'_

          "I got that…"

          Roy sat up, releasing Marth's hand. He felt tired and sore, but he hadn't been that way when he had fallen asleep… He blinked thought the obtrusive blur in his eyes and looked around the barn, seeing it for the first time in daylight. But the strangest thing was that the fire from the night before was still going.

          Marth's gaze followed Roy's and saw the still-burning fire.

          _'It's because of you.'_ He told the ex-general quietly.

          The teen's jaw tightened visibly and he made a constricted sound in his throat.

          "I don't want it there. Put it out."

          Marth waved a hand, willing the fire to dissipate, but it stayed. He frowned.

          _'Roy, put it out. I can't.'_

          "What are you looking at me for? I can't do it!"

          _'Roy, stop denying that you have powers. You're only hurting yourself.'_ Marth stood up and stared at the fire, brows knitted in concentration. His hands glowed blue and he held them out to the fire, willing it to disappear. Instead, it shrank, becoming smaller and smaller until it was no more than a tiny dancing lick of flame. Marth's eyes narrowed and he willed ice to smother the fire. Instead, it merely built up around it instead.

          The prince-turned-mage walked over and picked up something from the ashes. The flame was completely encased within a shield of ice, yet still danced. The ice was like crystal, clear as glass and yet not cold like ice was supposed to be. It fit in Marth's palm, looking like a jewel.

          Marth turned and handed it to Roy, face icy. _'It's yours.'_

          Roy took the stone in his hand and stared at it in amazement and wonder. After a while, he clenched it in his palm, looking down at the ground and enjoying the icy burn on his skin.

          "Sorry."

          _'You're forgiven. Roy, I know this is difficult for you, but you have to be willing to try. I'm going to help you, but you can't fight me every step of the way.'_

          "Alright," the teen answered, taking a deep breath. "What do I need to do?" He pushed the thought of fighting Marth deep into his mind. It had been _all_ he had been doing for the past few months. Fighting, arguing- What had it been? Some sort of attraction? No, it couldn't have been.

          Marth sat down again, cross-legged and gestured for Roy to do the same.

          _'It's painfully obvious that your kind of magic pertains to fire and heat. What you need to do is find your magic inside of you so you can control and summon it. It will also help you become more balanced.'_

          Roy frowned, confused as to how he would 'find' this supposed magic within him.

          "What if… What if I set off another fire? I don't know what started the one at the inn, but…"

          _'I'll worry about that. You close your eyes and envision a flame deep inside of you. That's your magic. Now think about holding that flame in your hand, controlling it, commanding it to do your will.'_ Marth closed his eyes, envisioning a miniature blizzard within himself.

          The ex-general closed his eyes, sitting how Marth had indicated. He tried to reach within himself, but suddenly something exploded. Not in the barn, but there inside his body was a spark. Then he was on fire, like he had suddenly morphed into kindling, and he let out a cry of surprise.

          "Stop!" He shouted, looking alarmed and horrified at his body's fiery state.

          _'Control it, Roy! _You_ are the master of the magic, it is not the master of you!'_ Marth shouted to him, urging.

          The younger teen panicked, but somehow Marth's words got through to him. He would fight fire with fire…

          "_Stop_ doing this to me!" He yelled, louder than before, using his temper and sheer will. There was a noise, like the sound of a vacuum, and the fire encircling his body was gone. Roy fell back onto the scorched bay, exhausted. The stone in his hand pulsed comfortingly.

          Marth clambered over to Roy, eyes full of concern. He touched the ex-general's arm lightly.

          _'Are you alright?'_

          "Yes," Roy replied, closing his eyes with a deep breath and pushing himself up into a sitting position. "Do I try again?"

          _'If you can. You must conquer the magic and it will serve you.'_ The Prince did not tell Roy that his own magic had not been nearly so violent. _'You can do it.'_

          "Of course I can…" Roy said assuredly, his jaw set in a hard line. But, before he began to concentrate, he glanced at Marth, remembering the strange light when he had touched the ex-prince.

          "Marth… Uh… Do you feel any different today?"

          Marth nodded slowly.

          _'Yes. I didn't hurt so much and my burns weren't as bad. Why?'_

          Roy blinked in surprise and turned away, rubbing his temples.

          "Nothing… It's nothing," He paused. "Look, can we try to get something to eat? I'm feeling sort of dizzy…"

          _'The local tavern is serving free breakfast to all the victims from the fire. Let's go get some.'_ He got to his feet, trying not to look at the burns on his hands.

          The auburn-haired teen let out a sigh of relief and pushed himself up on wobbly legs. He made for the door of the barn.

          "I'm… nervous," he said quietly. "I don't want it to control me, so that's why I want to try it again when I'm stronger and have had something to eat. Do you think they have a bath house?"

          _'Don't be nervous. I think you're doing well.'_ Marth told Roy, following him slowly on account of his still-healing wounds. _'And yes, I believe that there is one.'_

Roy shook his head and took notice of his singed hair. He pushed the nervousness down, hoping the fire within him would swallow it.

          Marth walked towards the bathhouse, lost deep in thought. From here, there was nothing left except for them to travel to the capital and reclaim Altea from Gaimen.

          _'Or die in the attempt,'_ He thought. _'There is a very real possibility that one or both of us will die during this.'_ Marth froze for a moment. What would be do if Roy died?

          _'I don't even want to think about it.'_

          "Are you two going to bath together?" the bathhouse owner asked once they had come inside.

          Roy nodded quickly from reading the man's lips and they were shown to a formal foreign-style bath. It was fairly large and about chest-deep (for Roy, that is).

          They both stripped silently and got in the water. There were washing cloths and soaps available, so Roy got right to washing himself. Years of conditioning himself to shower with efficiency won over. He glanced at Marth and noticed the scars on the ex-royal's chest, sighing. The teen had his own scars as well, this white lines from a whip to his back.

          "Marth," he started, clearing his throat, "When we talked earlier, were you thinking about beginning a… relationship after this is all over? Or before?"

          Marth bit back a cry of pain. The water was too warm and that coupled with his burns did not make him feel very good.

          _'I hold feelings for you now, Roy, but I can see why if may be more prudent to wait.'_ Marth said with a wince. _'But, in all honesty, I'd rather not.'_

          Roy nodded slowly and moved closer to Marth, but looked at something else in the bathing room, his eyes intense, more so than they had ever been before.

          "Prudent, mm? I see why as well, but…" He trailed off there, positioning himself above Marth in a sort of sitting position, resting a small bit of his lighter weight on the ex-prince's thighs. The teen began kissing Marth, pressing his fiery, unique lip-signature on Marth's own.

          Marth kissed back, reaching up to touch Roy's hair softly. He could feel the general's slick warm flesh against his and pulled Roy closer, running his icy fingers down Roy's back.

          The teen shivered and his hands tightened at Marth's shoulders. As the two of them fell deeper and deeper into pleasure, their mouth's dueling furiously; Roy's mind abruptly came to a halt. This, he realized, was _right_… He and Marth, together, were completely and utterly right. The boy-general knew nothing else until he pulled away, panting for air.

          "I…" He breathed. "Sorry, I got… carried away…"

          Marth nodded, also breathing deeply. The icy Prince's skin was slight with salty sweat and his hair clung to his face, neck and shoulders damply.

          _'This time I got to kiss back,'_ he said with a quiet smile.

          "And you enjoyed that?" Roy asked quietly, moving off of Marth gently to sit down next to him. He took note of Marth's appearance and raised the wet, soapy cloth to the ex-prince's face.

          _'He's probably wondering why I'm acting like this… I am too.'_

          Marth closed his eyes, allowing Roy to wipe the sweat off his face.

          "It's very warm in here," he murmured aloud, referring to the kiss or water or both. Marth ducked his head under and came back up, sweeping the blue mass back and completely uncovering his face for probably what was the first time since he and Roy had been together.

          Roy watched Marth's lips, trying not to feel discouraged. He just _knew_ that his recent loss of hearing had to do with his magic or the fire. The boy-general leaned back with a heavy sigh, washing his hair idly.

          "Can't you make it colder?"

          _'You wouldn't like it.'_ Marth answered, remembering to finally switch to thoughtspeech. _'And your hearing will return soon. Just be patient.'_

          "I… This is so confusing, but I thank you for wanting to help me. I'll meet you back in the stable later…"

          Roy stood and climbed out of the bath after placing another kiss on Marth's lips. He dried off and dressed himself in his burned clothes once again.

TBC…

Vallen: Please be patient with us as our schoolwork is pushing us both very hard and our time is limited. How was the lime? *hopeful*

Xan: {Was not available}


	23. Weapon

Fubuki no Kaen

Authors: Xan and Vallen

Rating: R

Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)  
Notes: Vallen: In my opinion, I think this is one of the best chapters content-wise. Lots of good conversation between Marth and Roy. Read on!

Xan:  be thankful to vallen for this one! Ii was gone all weekend and I guess she typed it up out of boredom.  Or maybe because she loves y'all.  In any case, give her lots of presents.

Thank you to: Valamarit (Yes, they are going to kill Gaimen very soon… He shall die a suitable death), Ryuke-Naoe (Wow, I can't believe we have people recommending our fic… I feel special. And I'm sure Xan does too, but she's not here right now. Glad to have you with us!) Leera the Elemental Mage (You like the interaction bits? Well, then you should love this chapter. You're welcome for ch.16 as well), hooshi (Shizzled your nizzle? *blink* o.o Kinda ironic that it was on your b-day, but I must apologize. There is no lemon… .), Evil Anime Chick (Ohh, yes, we gotta love that boy-on-boy action. Well, at least I do), Evui (*giggles* Oh, that's great… I will accept laziness as an excuse, seeing as I am very lazy myself, but now that you've reviewed, you gotta keep on telling us what you think! *huggle* We love new (and returning) reviewers… Xan should be happy to hear that you liked the symbolism… That was her doing), YoshiMars (Haha, yes… I had a feeling that you guys would like a bath scene, seeing as we kinda brought it up in the group and all. We had that planned, so we were just playing with you… ^_^), RcA (^^ *smushes Marth and Roy plushies together* Oh! I love that! That's my favorite *action* of the week! Yes, the chapter was a little short- Sorry!), Belldandy (Ack, you get spring break NOW? We had it in March… Marth 11. From now on, Roy is nice to Marth, so you can breathe a sigh of relief), Sake Girl Duelist (hehe… I wouldn't burst in on them if I were you… Roy might burn you to a crisp), Spectrum (Great points! It seems that you, Xan and I are all happy to see them making progress… *gets all teary-eyed* But this also means the END too! Wai!! *cries*), pannybaby123 (Ah yes, the powers coolness factor. We tried to make them as real as possible… And cool at the same time), Spanish Ninja Sneasel (*continues for her* and the lips and the water and the- I'M RANTING AREN'T WE? *laughs nervously* You're right, Marth IS a very subtle person- At least, Xan has chosen him to make him that way. On the other hand, Roy is not…), klar (O.O Fanart instead of essay?! We're VERY flattered, but we don't want to get you into trouble… We'll just keep on making this more and more delicious- Make sure you read my author's note at the bottom), Dark Comet (Hee! I wish I was Marth AND Roy…), tikimoof (As far as power, Marth is stronger because he's been practicing magic longer. As far as Rowen, he is… a definite character for FnK2), GS Failure (Speaking of math, Xan and I are in the same math class and sit right next to each other… *sweatdrop* The teacher gets annoyed with Xan writing, but she never catches me. ^^ Thank you for the review!), Marth-Roy-Fan (So that means you love every single chapter? Aw, I think that's good… Thanks!), and Sinnatious (Tee-hee… Yes, I decided that I would not put you guys through another evil cliffhanger. Ha, it would be funny if he burned the whole town down… *cackles evilly* Or Altea for that matter). 

Roy wandered through the town, trying to figure out where he was going. He would have stopped and asked for help, but that was useless. He finally found his way to a small dwelling, where a frail old man worked over a magnifying glass, carefully constructing jewelry.

"Excuse me?" He said, standing at the door. He saw the grey-haired man move his lips in what seemed to be a greeting, pausing in his craft. 

"I am deaf, but not mute, so you'll have to forgive me," Roy started, stepping forward. He took out the stone that Marth had created for him and showed it to the artisan. "Could you put this on a chain? I'll pay whatever the fee."

The old man seemed to be sympathetic and took pity on Roy, a seemingly poof deaf boy who had been a victim of the fire. He motioned for Roy to give him the stone and wrote out on a piece of paper how much it would cost the teen and that he would do it quickly right now.

The elderly artisan squinted his aged brown eyes at Roy's stone, but did not question as to what kind it was. He worked diligently with his tools on it, selecting a fine silver chain.

The boy-general paid the fine worker in gold pieces left over from Trave and slipped it around his neck. It was comforting, a mixture between hot and cold, and also a reminder of Marth. The stone was very peculiar indeed, portraying a still-burning flame carefully and intricately encased in ice.

He walked out of the store, wandering around the village. It was then that his senses were bombarded by the smell of burnt flesh and death. He approached the church-turned-infirmary, walking inside slowly. Around him was a picture of chaos and sickness. A few dozen (at least) people were confined to makeshift sickbeds while the unhurt scrambled around to care for them. It was obvious that these were the seriously injured victims of the fire and Roy had to force himself to stand back and look at it all.

_'This is what fire does… How could I ever learn to harness it to my advantage?'_ The teen walked around the area, blending in perfectly with his burnt clothes and hair. He looked down upon a small, unattended girl.

She wore a charred and ripped blue dress and obviously hadn't been helped yet. Her lips were dried and cracked from inhaling too much smoke and one could tell that her throat was damaged as well from the way she was breathing. A raw, open wound on her upper chest around the collarbone was the worst thing ailing her.

The town hadn't been prepared for a fire like this in the winter, so they were probably going to lose a few people. Roy bit his lip and looked around, making sure that no one was looking. If _it_ worked for Marth, _it_ could work for this girl, right?

He touched the wound softly and immediately the orange light began streaming from his fingers and the girl's wound started to heal. The pus dried up and the injury started to close from the outside edges in. The teen pulled away right after it had closed and was merely a scar.

He stared at her and his hand in disbelief, not conceiving what he had just seen to be true. But it was.

Roy tore away from the infirmary and sprinted to the site of the fire. Standing before it, he clenched his fists and cursed it for all he was worth. He remembered something and got down on his knees, rifling through the ashes and debris.

There! Roy's hands found the hilt of Marth's sword- He had been smart enough to grab his own in the pandemonium, but Marth had not. The teen knew that the weapon was special to the exiled prince, so perhaps he was doing him a favor. He clutched the sword in one hand and the stone through the fabric of his shirt in the other, trudging back to the stable.

Marth sat in the water, stirring it idly. Once Roy had left, he had decreased the temperature dramatically so that the water was now at a level most people could not tolerate. He made sure to melt the ice back and pay for the two of them before going back to the stable.

"Hello boy. I'm sorry I left you for so long." He murmured, stroking his stallion's neck softly. Cloud nickered and lipped Marth's hair. Marth tugged on his forelock.

"You stupid horse." He patted Roy's mare as well. "Roy'll be back soon, girl."

Roy walked in silently, not bothering to hide Marth's sword as a surprise. There was a certain scared and confused look in his blue eyes, but he tried to hide it as best he could.

"For you." The teen held the special blade out for Marth to grasp.

Marth's eyes widened slightly and he took the sword from Roy, clasping the soot-blackened hilt tightly. He ran his fingers over the Altean crest inscribed in the gold and the ice-blue jewel set there. He and Falcion had been through much, ever since he had picked it from the armory as a child.

_'Thank you…'_ He said to Roy, looking up at the ex-general. Then he frowned.

_'What's the matter?'_

There was a long silence as Roy turned his face away from Marth's.

"Marth… Is it possible for one person to heal another?"

Marth was silent for a moment, considering Roy's question.

_'Rowen told me once that there were healers- people whose magic could heal other people but that they were exceptionally rare. Did you see one or something?"_

"Maybe- In the infirmary. There were many injured people in there, too many for the town to take care of, and suddenly one just got better… Is that healing?" Roy questioned, choosing his words carefully so not to make the ex-prince suspicious of anything.

_'Possibly. I've never seen it done.'_

Roy nodded his assent and turned to his horse, checking her stall, making sure that everything was in order. He grabbed a brush and began to brush the black mare fervently, putting his concentration into it.

Cloud snorted and looked at Roy with puzzlement before going to nuzzle to the mare.

_'Roy,'_ Marth said sharply, _'What's wrong?'_

The auburn-haired teen ceased his brushing and stared into Marth's eyes, grasping the stone underneath his shirt tightly. He couldn't keep _this_ a secret from his prince.

"I think I healed a little girl…" He said softly.

Marth's mouth fell open slightly and he stared at Roy.

_'Are you _positive_?'_ He asked faintly.

"I'm pretty sure… I mean, I touched her and there was this light. The next thing I knew was that the burn wound was simply a scar," Roy answered shakily, burying his face in his horse's black, fleshy neck as if he was embarrassed.

Marth stepped over to Roy and placed a hand on his shoulder.

_'You healed me too, didn't you?'_

"I didn't mean to! I'm sorry," the teen apologized, lifting his head.

_'Roy, don't apologize. What you have been given is a great gift and I can only wish that Rowen was here to teach you properly. But I will try the best I can alone. You just need to have faith.'_

They were on the road the next day, only a week away from the capital. Roy was uncomfortable with Marth giving him impromptu lessons from the saddle, but that was the way it had to be. A feeling of nervous anxiety fell upon them as they worked, but the two young men tried their best to keep calm.

"Good, but you came close to catching your horse on fire. Power is not what we want here, you're learning _control_." Marth told Roy, who was practicing with his fire magic from his mare's back.

"Damn." Roy answered, looking at Marth attentively. The boy-general had regained his hearing suddenly one day when they had been practicing intensely. There had been a loud roar of fire that only he heard and a force that had knocked him off his horse. The teen was quite stunned at the time, but hearing Marth's voice and the sounds around them changed that to happiness.

Marth was in truth a bit of a martinet and he tried to help Roy to the best of his abilities, but as a novice mage himself, there was only so much he could do.

"Try again and aim carefully. _Force_ it to go where you want it to."

"At this rate, I'll set the entire castle on fire…" Roy grumbled, clenching his fists. They erupted in flames and he held them there.

"If you kill Gaimen in the process it will be worth it," Marth replied. "Castles can be rebuilt. Now control it."

"Fire is so destructive… I took a look around at the village and all I saw were people in pain, pain that the fire had caused. How can I control that?"

"A sword is a destructive force, is it not? It can't be used for anything but causing pain and yet you control it. You control your power like a sword- use it as a weapon for good and not destruction."

A light began to brighten Roy's eyes as a small smile appeared upon his face.

"And with sword fighting comes skill and talent…" He added, raising one fiery fist.

The auburn-haired teen slowly unclenched his hand and arched it over his head, creating an artful half-circle of fire. Roy stared at the fingertips, creating a flame sphere and moving it around in the air with his mind. He had felt this awesome feeling before, when he had defeated his first opponent.

The ex-prince turned Roy's sphere into a ball of ice, causing it to fall to the ground and shatter.

"Talent you undoubtedly have, skill you do not. Not yet. But if you keep improving by this much, by the time we get to the capital, you'll be as good as Rowen." Marth paused. "Roy, have you given any though as to how we're going to get in? We're still in exile."

Roy's face fell as he watched his first sphere drop and break, but tried not to look too disappointed. This was no time to act like a child who had just had his bubble burst.

"No, I hadn't though about it. The only plausibly way to get in would be under some sort of disguise…" Roy thought logically, switching to general mode.

"A disguise…" Marth mused. "I suppose we'll think of one when we get there."

"_I'll_ think about it… I'll have to try and remember stuff from espionage training. Something that they would never recognize you as." Roy fell silent.

"Like a woman?"

The boy-general gave a start, almost dropping the reins.

"I guess you could say that…"

"There was an assassination attempt on my parents and I once when I was younger and we had to go into hiding. They dressed me in girl's clothing and passed me off as one. It worked." Marth bit his lip. "I can always do that again."

"No one's forcing you, so it's your choice… Now I just have to think of something for myself," Roy answered.

"Do you think your voice is going to change anytime soon?"

To be continued…

Vallen: Ah, that was a fun chapter. I wrote most of the beginning with Roy, so I was hoping all you Roy-fans would appreciate that, aaaannnd… Cross-dressing is so much fun. ^_^ *evil* Now, who dares to oppose the great, almighty, awesome power of cross-dressing?! *crickets chirp* *tumbleweeds roll by* That's what I thought.

Xan: *snickers evilly* oh, fun fun fun fun...  it takes a rather... gender-bending turn at this point, so enjoy...

Important Question: Are any of you anime fans going to A-Kon?


	24. Femme

Fubuki no Kaen

Authors: Xan and Vallen

Rating: R

Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…

Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.

Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)

Notes: Xan:  Mmm….  We promised gender-bending, so here it is.  Enjoy!  *is beginning to sound like a Coke commercial*

Vallen: Here's to all you cross-dressing lovers! *raises glass*

Thanks to:  Spanish Ninja Sneasel (Glad you liked it!  And I really liked that part with Marth's sword too.  I thought it was adorable.  ^_^  They're so damn cute!!  Yeah…  Marth's a tough teacher. *sweatdrop*), Tikimoof (Heh…  About the hay and hair thing…  I'm very blonde and horses tend to think that my hair is hay, so I'm not making it up.  I don't know how they can confuse MARTH'S hair, but it's kind of a motiff now, so I'm not going to change it.  Besides, I think it's cute.), Evui (No, Akon is in Dallas, TX…  But we'd love to go to ANY kon!  They're fun!), Spectrum (Yes yes yes, crossdressing!  This was suuuuuch fun to write!  I loved it muchly!  And we're glad you're liking it too!), Pannybaby123, (Ah yes, the necklace was MY little touch, one that I'm very proud of.  Vallen liked it too, so it's kind of a major part of FNOK2, which makes me happy.), Ryuke-Naoe (Yeeees…  Marth looks GOOD in drag.  So does Roy for that matter.  I'm hoping to get some yummy fanart out of this chappie.  *hint hint*), Sinnatious (YES!  There is indeed a FNOK 2, which we are currently writing and having a ball in, actually.  *cheers*  It's almost more fun than this one 'cause we have a handle on the characters and stuff.  Oh, and thank you for the compliment on the last line.  It was mine.  *proud*  It's 'cause Vallen doesn't "do humor" as she puts it.  -_-), Lil PriNCeSs Me (Hee…  We certainly HOPE you're amused, even if you're supposed to feel sorry for the poor dears.  *snrk*  "Dears?"  Oh man…), Dark Comet (Yes!  "Photo Op!"  All the way!  ^_^  THIS is pure Marth and Roy blackmail materiel.  Now if only we could get Rowen in drag….  *sweatdrop*), Pokenicole18 (We loved your fanart!  And at least ONE person is looking forward to seeing Gaiman… The bastard.  He's not a RAT bastard like Trave was, but he's certainly a bastard nonetheless.  Hee…), Pichu*Star (We're glad you liked the lime, even if that was mostly all Vallen.  And no, unfortunately, Roy does NOT burn down the castle, but he does certainly get to put his fire powers to good use.  *clams up*  And no more freebie hints!  My lips are sealed from here on out.  And I wanna see the FE anime!  I've heard Marth is kind of a dork…  Say it ain't so!), Sake Girl Duelist (Glad you liked it!  And go kick some butt with Roy- you earned it!  ^_^), Winstrough (WIN-KUN!  So happy to see you review again!  ^_^  *glomps Win*  Even though you didn't say a thing about my baby Marth, I'll forgive you.), hooshi (Gah, don't fall off!  Reviewers are NOT allowed to die – it's Xan-Vallen policy.  ^_^;;  Hope this helps!), YoshiMars (YAY FANART!  *glomphug*  If any of you ever feel like you'd like to repay us for our wonderful work, you can ALWAYS draw fanart.  And it doesn't matter if it's stick people either!  IT's all good!), Klar (We love you too!  Can't you tell?), ElsalErestar (^_^  We aim to please of course!  Thank Vallen for that, btw.  She's the one who reviewed.  And nice try, but your powers are no match for ours!  Good thing we try to get these out quickly anyways.  Er, try.  ^_^;;), LilFilipinoGurl (Lurve!  You said lurve!  I lurve you!), Leera the Elemental Mage (Hehehehehehehe…  We'll see.  We try to please, but our twisted minds may have more torture in mind.  *goes off, cackling*), Asudem (Akon is in Dallas, TX like I said above.   And for the purposes of THIS fic, Roy's voice hasn't changed and it's not as deep as Marth's.  *sweatdrop*  That's kind of scary…), Doven (YAY, another Akon-goer!  We'll have to meet up!  …And scar you for life, but that's okay! (vallen note: If you're serious about hooking up, feel free to e-mail us! xan_vallen@cliffhanger.com)

          "What the hell? I don't think so… What about your voice? Are you just not going to talk?"

          "I don't talk anyways. We'll say I have some sort of condition or that I'm mute or something."

          "We?"

          "You."

          "So… We're the same thing?" There was a slight pause before Roy's face clearly indicated that he had an idea. "We'll both be maids!"

          "And apply for work at the castle? Sounds good."

          "Yeah… We gotta get clothes at the next town or something," Roy coughed, calming himself down. "I am _not_ excited about this."__

"It's not so bad. People have done worse things and as long as we get into the castle, it doesn't matter. The ends justify the means."

          "You're right," Roy agreed, speeding up their pace. "Oh… And Marth? I've been thinking more about this whole healing thing and I've decided that it's useful. I mean, if you're hurt or something in all this, I could save your life."

          "You've already saved it once. If you do it much more, you'll have a King eternally in your debt." Marth was, in reality, quite pleased with Roy's attitude change. He only wished that he could tell Rowen about Roy's newfound powers.

          "Hell, I could heal a lot of people…" The teen mused, glancing down at himself. "I have one more question: When do you get to the point that you're just too tired to use any more magic?"

          "When it's all run out. Magic is like physical energy- there are limits. If you keep using magic after you've reached the end of your limit, you draw on your own life force. It is not pleasant, I can assure you from personal experience. The after-effects are painful and you can even kill yourself if you put too much of your energy in."

          "Oh," Roy said. "That's probably the reason why I didn't want magic in the first place. Too risky. But promise me that you won't kill yourself- If you do that all this pain and torture will be a waste."

          "I have no intention of dying now." Marth answered quietly. "I owe it to myself and my people to stay alive. And I owe it to you."

          The boy-general was silent for a few moments.

          "I suppose… But you don't _really_ owe me anything."

          "What if I think I do?

          "Believe me, you don't."

          Roy and the black mare suddenly switched leads and galloped off, breaking through the thin layer of untouched snow on the road.

          It was after nightfall when Marth and Roy reached the capital city. The horses were tired, as were the two young mages, but they had been determined to reach it that day.

          "We'll get our disguises tomorrow," Marth said, voice quiet and full of fatigue as he dismounted in front of a crowded inn. "Right now I just need to sleep…"

          "Don't forget about me… I'm tired too…" Roy answered with a yawn. He handed the reins to Marth. It was safer for the ex-prince to put the horses in the stable rather than get the rooms.

          The ex-general trudged into the inn and searched around the crowd of people for someone who could help. He frowned and stepped up to a bar, catching sight of a large man serving drinks.

          "How do I get a room?" Roy yelled over the din.

          The beer-smelling innkeeper snorted and looked down at him

          "'Taint possible. There's nuthin' left here," he replied.

          Roy face fell, but he gathered himself up again, clenching his fist with a determined look.

          "Look, if this place was full, then you'd have a sign saying so. Give me a room," he said through his teeth.

          "A room's more than you can pay, boy."

          The teen fished some gold coins out of his pack and thrust them at the innkeeper. His eyes flashed, daring the man to challenge him.

          "One night. And there's more where that came from if we decide to stay longer."

          The innkeeper's eyes shone with greed and he snatched the coins up, snapping his fingers. A servant girl appeared, obviously the one to show him to the room.

          Once he had gotten the key and put his pay down, Roy ran to the back and met Marth, who was waiting for him. There were stable servants to take care of the animals, so there was no need to look after them any further.

          Marth followed silently behind Roy, bowing his head so that he would not be recognized. The boy-general locked the heavy wooden door quickly behind them and let out a sigh.

          The room was not worth the money he had paid for it. There was one bed, a few candles, one window (which Roy shut and covered), and other miscellaneous dirty furniture.

          "Sorry, this was all I could get…" Roy muttered under his breath.

          Marth inclined his head slightly and stripped down to his breeches tiredly. The ex-prince fell into the medium-sized bed and closed his eyes. Roy did the same and followed soon after, emitting a tired sigh. His hand sought Marth's under the covers and held it.

          Marth pulled Roy closer to him, wrapping his free arm around the general.

          "Tell me if this is too much." He murmured.

          Roy didn't answer. He was either fine with the skin-on-skin contact or fast asleep.

          The next morning dawned cold and overcast- just as Marth liked it. Roy was still deeply asleep so Marth left him be. The young general deserved it. Silently, Marth got out of bed and pulled on his clothing, including his large cloak. Pulling the hood up, he stole out of the room and went down to the stables.

          It was early enough so that there were very few people awake and about. Only a few sleepy-eyed stable boys witnessed their former Prince saddle his large grey stallion and ride off into the misty morning.

          The streets of the large city wound around Marth like a maze, familiar from another life. So much had happened since he had last seen these things, so much had changed…

          The blue-haired man rode to the gates of the palace… _His_ palace. His home, he reminded himself.

          _'This is my country. And these people are my people. And it is my duty to reclaim them. I cannot fail now after coming so far. I _will_ not.'_

          Cloud chomped on the bit, stirring Marth. The prince patted his stallion's neck fondly.

          "Forgive me if I don't come out of this alive, my friend."

          He turned and rode back to the inn.

          The boy-general tumbled out of bed and dressed himself in a pair of clean clothes, noting that Marth was not there. He snuck downstairs into the slave's quarters and stole the servant girls' clothing after analyzing their body type as they slept. The boy crept back to the room as quietly as possible, his arms full of girl's clothing.

          Roy took off everything except his undergarments and pulled a long-sleeved, rust colored maid's dress on over his head. It had a high collar, plain sleeves, but a bit of white lace at the bottom hem- Not new, but good enough. He twirled around in the mirror, liking the way the dress flattered his slim waist. With a small laugh, he took off his headband, letting his hair down, and donned a white apron as well. It was indeed strange, but it would work.

          Marth walked in then, having returned from his ride. He stopped short, surprised by the presence of a young woman in his and Roy's room.

          "Excuse me, miss, but-" He stopped and blinked. "_Roy?"_

          The teen in the dress turned around, caught sight of Marth, and his bright blue eyes widened visibly in surprise. A faint blush colored his cheeks.

          "It's me," he said quietly with a small curtsy.

          "I… see." Marth circled around Roy, eying him. "You look good."

          Marth found the clothing that Roy had gotten for him and stripped down as well to pull them on.

          He found himself in a simple dark blue dress of plain, worn cloth. It was a little snug across his shoulders and was a little short, but it would do. He 'fluffed' his hair a bit and curtsied to Roy.

          "My lady," he murmured in a voice that was much more feminine than normal.

          Roy bowed again and turned away, his face serious once again. He examined his chest, deciding that they both would have to put something down the front of their dresses.

          "It doesn't matter if I look good… Only that it's believable."

          "We could paint our faces like women do. Lip rouge and all that." Marth nibbled a nail thoughtfully. "I used to watch my mother do it."

          Roy blinked, touching his face briefly.

          "That would be good, except I didn't grow up around women, so will you help me on that?"

          Marth nodded, taking the dress off again.

          "Certainly. When do we want to go to the castle?"

          "That's just what I was about to ask you, so…" Roy answered. "Let's go today- Now even. I want to get this plan of ours underway… It might seem a bit impatient of me, but I'm serious about this."

          Marth thought it over for a moment before nodding.

          "Change back and check us out. I'll get the horses ready." He swiftly got back into his normal clothes.

          "Hold on, we can't just waltz up there in our regular clothing, say 'Hello, wait just one minute while we become girls' and expect them to hire us. I think we're going to have to leave the horses here and go on foot after we check out," Roy answered, pulling on his pants and tunic. "I've thought this out… And, seeing as you've never really had a _problem_ getting inside your own castle, I think you should leave this to me."

          Marth nodded again.

          "True. But what about our normal clothes and weapons? Shall we hide them somewhere?"

          "Damn… That is a problem. I say we work for one day, then smuggle those in at night, and attack the next day… That's assuming that all goes as planned…" The boy-general packed the girl clothes in his pack and slung it over his shoulder.

          "There is a hiding place outside of the castle that we could use. It's known only to the royal family, but I would wager that Gaimen has forgotten about it. We could use that."

          "Sounds good… You go pay off some stable hands to take care of the horses for a few days and I'll inform the innkeeper that we are leaving. I don't think he'd care, though," Roy muttered sarcastically, disappearing.

          Marth went to do as Roy had said, bribing the stable boy's to take care of his stallion and Roy's mare. He waited down there for the auburn-haired general.

          "Everything's set. Let's get some of that makeup stuff you talked about, then set our plan in motion!" Roy said excitedly, his eyes lighting up with the fire he had within. He grasped the gem beneath his shirt briefly.

          The Prince's eyes glanced at the object that Roy was holding. He had no idea that the general had kept the fire-in-ice that he had inadvertently made.

          "We'll have to either 'borrow' or purchase some ourselves. I opt for 'borrowing'. I'll be right back.'

          Marth disappeared, but returned a moment later bearing several small pots.

          "Let's go somewhere private and change before I do this."

          "I know a place. Follow me." Roy led Marth out into the streets.

          They were fairly empty, but it was not a pretty sight. Women and children dressed in rags sat in front of their bare shops. Some were just sitting idly, but others washed clothes. There was the sound of crying and a hushed whisper.

          "Don't worry, we'll get through this… My Roland got taken a week ago. I thought we were fine, but the taxes just kept getting higher…"

          Roy frowned and could feel Marth's tension radiating from him. He continued to walk and entered a bar, going directly to the restroom. The teen locked the door behind them and began to get dressed.

          "He's taxing my people into starvation…" The Prince whispered in a harsh, numb voice. "And taking them captive…"

          He shook his head to clear it and began to change into his dress. Roy emerged, already in his. Marth turned to him, straightening his collar.

          "Hold still and close your eyes. I'm going to paint your face."

          Roy did as he was told and Marth opened the small jars, setting them aside. Eyes focused and intent on Roy's face, he began to delicately and precisely apply rouge to the general's lips.

          _'Not bad considering I've never done this before,'_ he thought, looking at them critically.

          "Now I'm going to do your cheeks and eyes."

          The Prince put the rouge on Roy's cheeks to give him a lively look (but not enough to clash with his hair) and put grey around the boy's eyes, giving them a smoky look.

          "You're done. Look in the mirror." Marth turned and also began to apply the makeup to himself.

          "Alright…" Roy replied, getting used to the strange substance on his lips. Upon seeing his self in the mirror, he almost fell over in shock. "_That_ is not me."

          The boy-general leaned in closer to his reflection, puckering his lips slightly and staring in disbelief.

          "This is unbelievable… If I were really a girl, would you want to court me?"

          Marth turned back to Roy. The Prince no longer appeared to be a Prince, but a Princess. His lips and eyes painted and his hair arranged in a distinctively feminine manner. Marth could have fooled most people into thinking he was female.

          "As I want to court you now, it is safe to assume that my answer would be yes." He answered, reaching over to fix Roy's wild auburn locks.

          "I'm not sure whether it's a blessing or extreme oddity that I am talented in the area of face-painting, but in this situation it proved useful," he remarked quietly. "Come, we don't have long to tarry."

          After stuffing the front of their dresses to create the illusion of breasts, the former Prince and General hurried to the castle.

          "You talk too proper to be a commoner, Marth. Try not to sound too stuck up, okay?" Roy sneered good-naturedly. The castle gates loomed closer.

          "Can't I just be a mute?" Marth muttered, glancing up at the guards.

          "Shush."

          Roy approached the guards, recognizing them immediately. He tried not to look suspicious and cleared his throat to change his voice.

          "We here that most of the servants are on strike…" The teen began, keeping his head bowed submissively. No one wanted a servant who looked him or her in the eye. 

          One of them eyed the two "women" and grunted in acknowledgement.

          "Alright, what do yeh want, girl?"

          "We want work. A full day's labor for minimum wage- You can't get any cheaper than that," Roy answered. 

          There was a pause as one guard glanced to the other.

          "I'll take yeh to the head of cleaning and see if she wants to do anything with yeh. C'mon," he said gruffly, taking out a key and entering a small door to the side of the gates.

          They were lead into the huge castle (which looked like a gloomy fortress now) and down into the lower levels. Beneath the grand higher levels were the laborers and even further, the jail.

          A large, sweaty woman approached them. Her hair was done up in a messy bun and her eyes were weary.

          "Here's two. Send 'em out if you don't want 'em," the burly man said, then left.

          The woman stepped forward and took Marth and Roy's hands in hers, examining them. They were rough with calluses, but from swordplay, not work. She didn't know the difference.

          "Your names?"

          "Uhm… Margaret and Miranda," Roy answered quickly.

          "My cousin Margaret and I are hard workers. You won't regret hiring us, I promise," Marth said softly, averting his eyes as well.

          The mistress nodded slowly.

          "Get to work. You'll start with the linens- It's hard work, but you two look like sturdy girls. At the end of the day, ask one of the others to lead you to the barracks. Feel free to ask them any questions." She lead them to a hot, steamy room filled with tubs of boiling water.

          "You start now."

TBC…

Xan:  Bwahahahaha!  Hope you liked this one as much as the last one.  Things are really heating up for our boys, ain't they?  But don't worry – it'll get worse before it gets better. 

Vallen: Definitely more fun stuff later. TTFN. What did you think of our beautiful boys cross-dressing? ****


	25. Harem

Fubuki no Kaen Authors: Xan and Vallen Rating: R Warnings: One thing. Or, lots of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But we hope you do. Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea," do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure. Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!) Notes:  
  
Vallen: [wasn't available for comment]  
  
Xan: *gasps* Look, it can't be! But it is! A new chapter! Oh my God! Sorry about the delay over this one- it was hell at school lately, but it's over now! Yay!! We even managed to live through our finals for you guys! This is just a little end-of-school present from us. ^_^ P.S. I did the thankyous this time.  
  
Thanks to: Asudem (Heh! Creepy? Whatever could you mean? And it's fun to write them crossdressing, so all of you who don't like it are stuck for the next little bit, I'm afraid), Sake Girl Duelist (*blinks at her running off* I don't think it's all that scary. I can also all-too-easily picture them in girl's clothes. They may not be doing it WILLINGLY, per se, but it works, right? ^_^), LilFilipinoGurl (Thank you! At least SOMEBODY likes them in drag. And God knows WHY Marth knows how to put on makeup, but he does. *shrugs* He's a weird one, that Marth guy.), Rayestar Ikina (Oooh! Good suggestions! Why didn't I think of Maria?! *hits self on head* Rowena's a pretty name, but we already have Rowen, so it may have confused people and we don't want to do that. Anyways, Vallen really wanted to name Roy Margaret for some strange reason and I wanted Marth to have an "M" name, so Miranda was the first thing that came to mind.), tikimoof (Okay, we can't possibly expect Marth and Roy to pull of a Nuriko on such short notice, so give 'em a break. We're glad you like it though! And what's so bad about watching Kenshin? {Xan and Vallen both are Kenshin fans}), Pichu*Star (AWW! Do you have a friend who could scan it for you? We LOVE fanart! We're so glad you think that the story is coming along so well. I certainly HOPE it's coming along, considering that it's almost done. Yes, we like action and the humor is mostly due to my part since it's my forte while Vallen's is angst. We're a good combination that way. *giggles* A dorky Marth- I must see! *runs off to find the FE anime*), YoshiMars (Yes, this was a cute chapter, wasn't it? *smile* A little cuteness is good every once in a while, but not too much or else it gets stupid. PLEASE draw it for us and post it online! We'd love to see what you see! *excited*), Sherrilyn (Yay, another person who likes it! Never thought of Marth and Roy crossdressing? Well, we're glad that we planted the seed within your brain. Sorry this update came so late!! School and crap to attend to.), hooshi (Gah! The evil cliffhangers! But there wasn't one on that chapter! *shrugs* Oh well! Doesn't really matter, does it? ^_^), Elsalhir Erestar (Yes, crossdressing swordsmen ARE highly amusing! *evil laughter* Ha! You won't kill us or you'll NEVER know what happens! And then all the OTHER readers will come and kill you! Bwahaha! Oh and thanks! I had a lot of fun writing the makeup part. ^_^ I'm so bad.), Ryuke-Naoe (Yaiiiiiiiiiiii! CHIBI MARTH AND ROY CROSSDRESSING! That is one of the cutest things I've ever seen! Please draw it and scan it for us! *puppy eyes*), Dark Comet (Yay, more people who want to draw for us! *happy xan dance* *winces as well* Geesh I hope not too. That would be unfortunate. ^_^), Sinnatious (Hey, don't apologize! It made us grin too! Heh, as for the borrowing, it's not as if they have MORALS or anything, right? They're only the future king and high general of a nation. ^_^;; The ends justify the means, right? And yes, they ARE becoming much more comfortable with one another, which is good. And no, no cliffhanger. We can't do them ALL the time, unfortunately. And yes, fear the sequel! We're even MEANER to them in THAT one! *runs off cackling like a maniac* BWAHAHAHA!), Spectrum (This was a lighter chapter, as far as ours go, but it was welcome for us too. Even we need a break sometimes to write lighter stuff. But never fear, it doesn't stay like this for long. Bwaha! Oh you pointed out one of my favorite scenes too! Aren't they cute? I love them to death. ^_^ I'm often surprised at how much they changed as well and I'm WRITING the damn fic! How's that for sad? And thank you about the compliment on the dialogue- we have fun writing it and we hope you have fun reading it too.), pannybaby123 (Hee! I want a picture of them in drag on my wall too! Maybe if somebody does a really good fanart, I'll print it out and stick it on there. I had some fanart in my locker and people kept asking me about it. It was really funny.), Li Kayun (Machiavelli fan yes! Marth probably is too. Perhaps I should make him read The Prince [that is the book, right? History was a long time ago.])  
  
Roy grabbed a long paddle and began stirring the linens in the steaming water, the fiery, determined look upon his face once again. 'These would get cleaner if the water was hotter...' He infused the already-growing fire with his power and bowed his head, smirking a little. 'Cheater.' Marth said into Roy's mind. Already, the Prince was sweating slightly as a result of the massive fires and the amount of heat in the room. The auburn-haired teen scowled slightly and stirred with more strength. He could not reply. He had not mastered the patience and concentration it took to use mindspeech, for he had been working too hard with his other powers. Perhaps it was better that he could not speak into Marth's head yet. At the end of the day, the two of them were shown back to the barracks, where they would live with the other exhausted serving girls. As Marth and Roy were handed sets of bedclothes, the Prince had the strange feeling that he was being watched. Or worse, the feeling that  
  
he was being recognized. 'Roy,' he sent as he glanced around covertly, looking for the eyes that were upon him. 'Do you feel that?' Roy nodded sharply, turning around to search the crowed of servant girls. He met a familiar pair of green eyes. 'You!' He exclaimed mentally, trying to hide his surprise. The owner of the eyes gasped and bowed her head, dropping to her knees on the floor. The other girls stared at her - most went to their  
  
bunks, but a few stayed behind. "Gwen? What's wrong?" The boy-general moved over to Marth, his eyes widened. He gripped Marth's arm tightly. "It's that girl..." 'Sh. Don't act so obvious. We'll talk to her later.' Marth turned away and busied himself with preparing his and Roy's bunks.  
  
Roy rolled into a bottom bunk, still dressed in the girl clothes. It wasn't safe to change in here. He let out an exasperated sigh. "This is going to keep me up all night..." He whispered, looking to where Gwen was. The girl was gone. 'Which is precisely why we're not going to wait until tomorrow.' Marth's eyes darted to Roy. 'I know the girl's mind - she won't reveal us, but it is imperative that we speak to her. Come on, we're doing this now.' "Won't the other girls get suspicious? Should you just go alone?" Roy hissed back, folding his arms over his chest in a tense gesture. Marth paused. 'Yes. Then stay here, I won't be long.' The blue-haired Prince stood and walked off, following the magical "scent" of the girls' mind.  
The former slave girl was huddled in a storage closet, obviously frightened and surprised by the sight of the two young men. She looked up at Marth with her large, fearful eyes as he found her.  
"F-forgive me. I did not mean to disturb you or attract your attention."  
"Gwen," Marth spoke quietly in a soothing, yet commanding tone. "Do not be afraid of us please. I only wish to speak to you." He paused. "I'm very happy that you managed to escape from Trave's."  
"Oh. I. Yes sir," the girl answered, kneeling before Marth out of habit. She had worked around women for so long, but the presence of a man still sent shocks down her spine.  
"You saved the two of us at Trave's manor - helped us escape. For that we are grateful." Marth paused. "Gwen, do you know who I am? Who I was before I became Trave's pleasure slave?"  
"I don't know. But whatever you tell me, I'll keep quiet, I promise," she answered.  
The blue-haired man paused for a long moment, scrutinizing her before speaking again,  
"I am Prince Marth, come back to the capital to reclaim my kingdom and seize my throne. My companion is Roy, High General of Altea."  
"My." She breathed, holding her face in her hands and then bowed deeper, pressing her palms and face to the floor. "I'll help you. Just tell me what I can do."  
Marth shifted his weight, unused to being bowed to after so many months.  
"You have helped us already. Just keep our secret. When I am restored to my kingship, you will be justly rewarded, Gwen. I promise you that."  
"I will keep the secret." Gwen said softly. "I don't need a reward, though. What do you need to do?"  
"We need to get close to Gaimen, to observe him." Marth answered.  
"Oh, Master Gaimen. He is very strange and erratic in his movements around the castle. Never keeps to the same schedule."  
"Damn bastard." Marth hissed. "Where does he go?"  
  
"His chambers, the council room, the. h-harem area and other places like the courtyard, banquet hall." The girl answered.  
Marth felt his face pale.  
"He's created a harem?"  
The green-eyed girl did not answer, but sat up, her face flushed.  
Marth was silent for a very, very long time before he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.  
"Thank you, Gwen. Go to bed - you're very tired." He spoke, his voice and eyes soft. He gave her a small enchantment that would help her get to sleep more quickly and sleep more soundly before returning to his and Roy's bunk.  
'Roy, are you awake?'  
The teen gave a grunt of affirmation, but did not move. He lay on the bunk, completely still with his eyes closed. A bit of the paint had worn off during the day, but the faintest tinges upon his lips, cheeks and eyes were still present.  
'Roy, what do you think of being harem girls?'  
  
"This is ridiculous... I can not believe I let you talk me into this," Roy hissed at Marth as they crept down the halls of the giant castle. The plan was to encounter a guard and inform them that they were the newest additions to the harem and had gotten lost. Then they would be taken there... Dressed in the most infuriating, maddening clothes ever, Roy was having great trouble walking in a short red skirt and a white and grey blouse - all still in his female persona. Actually, they both had taken care of the hair on their legs and painted their faces again. Marth was wearing a dark blue bodice of crushed velvet (they had gotten Gwen to help them "borrow" more women's clothing) and loose puffy white sleeves. His skirt, unlike Roy's was long and a silvery grey color. He had also revealed another secret from the last time that he had been made to play the girl in his youth - pierced ears. The Prince now worse small silver earrings as well as a small sapphire pendant around his throat. "You didn't have to agree." Marth murmured, eyeing the door ahead of them through his long lashes, keeping his eyes half-closed demurely. If this was where he thought it was... 'He's turned my old rooms into his harem-quarters' Marth told Roy mentally, suppressing a snarl. "He's a snake, what can you expect? You weren't due back any time soon..." Roy whispered back. The guard let them in and locked the door behind them. "We're in." There must have been over thirty boys and girls in the open, decorated room. The pretty creatures lounged around, waiting to be wanted. Marth's eyes blazed cold fire and he forced himself to not to blow the place apart right then and there. 'Roy, we need to get into my bedroom.' He walked over to a door and found it locked. "We're not allowed to go in there - Master forbids it." A harem girl told them. "I didn't think you were that forward, Miranda," Roy said stiffly, but was in reality trying to crack a joke. It didn't work, so he just gave Marth an inquisitive look. Marth was under so much tension that he actually laughed, his nerves cracking. "I don't think Master will mind what we do in there." He said in a sultry voice, curling an arm around Roy's waist and giving his fellow "harem girl" a deep kiss on the lips. The other girl reddened and left stiffly. Marth placed his hand on the door handle, breaking the lock with his powers and slipped inside, pulling Roy in behind him. "Nice exit," the teen commented dryly, pulling down his skirt more - but that only made it seem shorter. He was not in the mood for kissing and the like in an atmosphere like this, but was wondering what they were doing in here.  
"Sorry, but if they think that we're lovers, they're more likely to leave us to ourselves for the most part." Marth told his general softly, observing his surroundings.  
His bedroom had changed little, much to his relief. Sparsely and expensively decorated, it reflected his simple, elegant tastes. 'Gaimen probably likes to come in here and remember what he used to do to me.' Marth thought with a sneer. 'That would explain why he never changed it. So he can still smell my scent.'  
"There are things in here that will help us." Marth told Roy aloud, going over to one of the walls and inspecting the stones.  
"Fine, I'll trust you on this one." Roy answered quietly. They both had to speak in soft tones, lest they be heard. ".Can I tell you something?"  
"Yes. What is it?" Marth pulled out one of the stone, pleased and relieved to feel it slide out smoothly.  
"I won't let you get hurt." Roy started, beginning to stammer. "I- I'll. protect you."  
Marth turned and to Roy, a strange look in his eyes, a look that in anybody else's gaze would be called love.  
"I know you will. But will you allow me to protect you in return?"  
"No way," the auburn-haired general answered quickly, looking uncomfortable. "I can. I can look after myself."  
"I know that you can. Just let me have the illusion that I'm as strong as you are." Marth replied softly, turning his gaze back to the hole in the wall. Out of it, he pulled two well-made swords.  
"I always kept extra arms hidden here in case of emergencies. Not even my bodyguards know, so there's no way that my uncle could have found out about them."  
"Smart." Roy remarked, glancing at Marth, then at the swords. "But yes, you can pretend. I do envy you for your height, though."  
"It isn't really that much of an advantage when your opponent makes full use of your weaknesses." Marth replaced the weapons. "They'll stay here safely until we need them."  
The prince's eyes traveled once again around the room, stopping at the framed miniature of his mother. His eyes became sad for a moment, then darkened once again.  
"Let's get out of here," he spoke, his voice strangely thick as he walked over to the door.  
"We're going to stay in there with the other girls?" The other teen asked, astounded. "What if Gaimen comes in? It's almost after supper."  
"The point is to see him, is it not?" Marth asked, going back into the main room.  
"But that could ruin everything!" Roy hissed back, looking wary. "What exactly are you trying to do?"  
'If he picks one of us to be with him for the night, what better opportunity to attack him? You'll be alone in an enclosed bedchamber, probably locked, in the dark and he won't be expecting an attack, much less from a highly extensively trained warrior who also has magepowers. And if he doesn't, then we still have an excellent opportunity to observe him.' Marth sent to Roy, mussing both of their hair a bit to give the appearance that they had been doing much more in the locked room than just talking.  
"We probably won't get chosen - I mean, we're not the most beautiful girls here. Although we did give ourselves fairly generous assets." The boy-general said, his cheeks turning pink as he laid out on a couch. "I don't like this though. It's too much like Trave's."  
'Do you see any other options?'  
  
Xan: Heh, I get credit for typing this one up! *does victory dance* Sorry it was so short, but that was cliffhanger that we couldn't pass up! And I hope at least a few of you are glad to see Gwen again. She's a good character and helps our boys.  
  
Vallen: [wasn't available for comment] 


	26. Mistake

Fubuki no Kaen

Authors: Xan and Vallen

Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with eventual yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…

Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)

xan:  well, this one is out a helluva lot quicker than the last one, i'm glad to say.  I did the thankyous this time, so I hope you have fun reading this chapter!  It's more tense this time!  Dum dum dum...

vallen: Everyone give Xan treats and goodies, I mean it!

Thanks to:  Foame369 (Thank you!  We pride ourselves on not being typical that way – Marth and Roy really have to WORK for each other in this, which makes it all the more fun, if you ask us.  ^_^  Then again, we're evil sadists, so…  Yay, spread the word about FNOK!), LilFilipinoGurl (Yeah, some people ARE disturbing…  It happens when you get too much power, it corrupts you and stuff.  Luckily, Marth and Roy are still un-disturbing.  Disturbed, yes.  Disturbing, no. ^_^;;), tikimoof ('tis okay.  We're rather used to long rants from a friend of ours. *coughs*zandra*coughs*  so yeah…  Glad you liked it though!), Sinnatious (^_^ That one was my cliffhanger, usually Vallen does 'em.  Glad you liked it though.  Ah yes, the lion's den… Very appropriate comparison.  It's probably quite true, as well.  You'll just have to wait and see-ee.), Sere-chan (Of course we're going to continue it!  All of you guys would probably track us down and kill us if we didn't…  Thank you for thinking our fic is so well-written, we really try.), Sphinxlabyrinth (*bows humbly*  I am soo sorry!  It's my fault – but we were busy with end-of-school year stuff like finals and whatnot and THEN it was Akon, so…  Updates almost NEVER take that long, so updates will be much quicker.), Dark Comet (Don't worry.  I can't even draw stick people Marth and Roy, so any kind of fanart is good fanart.  ^_^  Yeah, Marth is very convincing when he wants to be.  He's so damn reasonable, that's the problem.), Persian Kittie (No, unfortunately Gwen never really gets a STRONG personality, but she is quite significant in the future and in the sequel, so she grows to become more likable as the story wears on.  And she's very important to our boys, so…  Can't really blame her for the way she is though.  Marth and Roy were in Trave's for only a few weeks and they were scarred for life.  She was with him for several years [possibly her entire life], so…   Cut her some slack, okay?), Sake Girl Duelist (Marth is generous!  It's the entire royalty thing kicking in…  Here's a new chapter for you!), Morias (Oh I'm so glad to hear that you liked it!  It was a very "them" intensive chapter, so more character development – yay!!  It's alright, we excuse business, it's the reason why that chapter took so long to get out.  *nervous laughter*  Oh yeah…  and the chapter looked weird 'cause I had to put it up instead of Vallen and I had never done it before.  The rest of them will be like they're supposed to be, so don't worry about that.  And thank you, four hundred reviews makes us very happy!  We're both fine, thanks for asking!  *pleased*  They care about us!), Ryuke-Naoe (Ha, you won't hunt us down!  We'll never finish the fic if you do that and THEN where will you be?  *runs away, cackling* Bwahahahaha!!  And you know that we've given you worse cliffhangers, so nyah!), YoshiMars (*grin*  Yep!  Hopefully, we keep the story nice and twisty-turny so it's not too predictable for all you guys.  Look, don't stress yourself out over drawing junk for us – it's not _mandatory_ or anything, but it is nice to see.  Shows that people appreciate our work enough to give back!  That and it also shows that we insparate (read- inspire in xan-vallen talk ^_^) you to draw and put pretty pictures in your heads and that makes us happy.  *sweatdrop*  No, it wasn't hard, but it did kind of screw up.  Oh well.  Hopefully, Vallen can stick the rest of them up and we can avoid that problem entirely.), FOmar Fan (Glad you think so!  We do too.  *glomps Marth and Roy*), Shea (Yep, I remember you!  Yu Yu Hakusho is a fun series, but we're glad you still like FNOK!  Check back soon and don't forget about us! *sniffs*  And yes, we are very silly!!)

          "If you get picked, I'm not just going to sit in here and wait," Roy growled in a low voice.

          Marth reached for Roy's hand and squeezed it subtly, sitting beside him.  "Nor I if you get chosen.  Perhaps we can get him to choose us both."

          "Wishful thinking."

          Roy gave Marth's hand one squeeze before pulling it away and closing his eyes with a sigh.

          '_Not really…' Marth thought to himself. '__With a little effort, I probably could __force the thought into my uncle's twisted mind…'_

          "His majesty is coming!  Make yourselves presentable, wenches!"  One of the eunuchs who warded the harem cried abruptly, causing all the women and boys to flutter about in a mild state of panic.  

          Roy snorted and stretched, lounging and refusing to do what they said, but watched as all the others primped themselves for King Gaimen's arrival.

          "It would probably be better if you stayed somewhat out of sight," he told Marth, or Miranda. "It would be a waste if he recognized you right off the bat."

          "Considering that I'm the tallest 'woman' here, that is going to be slightly difficult," Marth said back to his "cousin."  Indeed, the prince was a full head taller than the next tallest person there.

          "Fine, don't listen to me.  Go and have your uncle do gods know what things to you…"  Roy snapped, staring directly at none other than Gaimen as he strode in.

          Marth's body stiffened and his eyes became hard, his skin blistering cold.

          '_Don't ever say that to me again.'  He hissed, digging his fingers into Roy's skin. He stopped abruptly as Gaimen walked through the door._

          Orange eyes, graying black hair that contrasted his powerfully built body and a handsome face, exactly as the prince remembered.  His intense, burning blue eyes focused on the older man's lips, those full, sensuous lips that had touched his skin, ravished his mouth and finally declared him a traitor and in exile.  Marth forced himself to tear his gaze away and tried to sit demurely, his head bowed and shoulders hunched so that he looked shorter.  

          Roy watched as well, the mere sight of the man disgusting him to no end.  Gaimen had humiliated him in front of high Altean authority before the boy had defeated him, something that he would never forget.  But instead he found fuel in his anger, and didn't notice the fire places in the rooms roaring to life.

          Marth noticed, however and elbowed Roy sharply.

          '_Control yourself before everybody in the castle notices us!'  _

          Roy blinked and came out of his heated reverie, fighting for the control that he did not have.

          '_I've got it,' he thought, closing his eyes with a shudder._

          He did not see the dozens of girls and pretty boys throw themselves at the tall man's feet, didn't see the way they begged for the attention of the lecherous Gaimen.  Marth watched however, as Gaimen's hands traveled over the faces of the slaves at his feet.  He stopped at a boy, beautiful of face with soft golden hair and emerald eyes.

          "Elliryk, you shall accompany me tonight."  The false king commanded, his voice deep and husky.

          The boy, Elliryk looked up at Gaimen with plain terror in his eyes, but looked back down quickly and nodded, his face growing pale.

          "Yes, your Majesty."  He whispered.

          Marth stared, feeling a lump rise in his throat.  The boy could not have been older than Roy and this was probably the first time that he had been called to the King's chambers.  He remembered his own fear, the many cold hours spent in pain that he could never reveal.

          Gaimen looked up and spotted the two new women amongst the thrall.

          "Who are those two?"  He asked to his head eunuch.

          "Two new ones; cousins, Majesty.  The red-haired one is Margaret and the other is Miranda.  They just arrived today."

          Gaimen nodded, studying them.

          "Pity they aren't boys.  Their features are a little masculine.  But no matter.  Prepare Elliryk and send him to my chambers when I summon him."  He turned and strode out.

          Once the guards had broken their formation and returned to their usual posts, Roy let out a growl.

          "Pedophile.  He likes them young, the bastard…"  He said under his breath.

          Marth nodded, swallowing the lump in his throat.

          "No need to tell me."

          He got up and walked over to Elliryk, crouching down beside the boy as best he could in the skirt.

          "Are you afraid?"

          Elliryk nodded numbly, his arms wrapped around himself.  

          "Is it your first time?"

          The boy shook his head.

          "No, but I've heard stories about what Gaimen does to all the pretty boys…  None of them ever come back the same.  They picked me up in a whorehouse in the brothels of the city.  They had executed my parents for not being able to pay the tax and I had to work somehow to feed my little sisters, but I haven't seen them since his Majesty's men picked me up and brought me here."

          Marth felt his heart skip a beat.  The tax was even forcing children into prostitution…  What had Gaimen done to his country in the time that he had been gone…?

          "Elliryk, what did you want to be when you grew up?"  Marth tried to smile.

          "A knight."  
          "Maybe Prince Marth will come back and you can still become a knight."

          Elliryk's eyes darkened and he spoke with a voice dripping with scorn. "No, Prince Marth is a coward.  He won't come back.  He's too afraid of King Gaimen."

          Marth felt a shiver run down his spine and his blood turn to ice.

          "Is that what everyone says?"  He asked in a dangerous, quiet voice.

          "Yeah."  

          Marth stood up and returned to Roy, walking stiffly.

          '_We need to act soon.  The people are beginning to lose hope.'_

          "Maybe tomorrow."  Roy answered, gesturing for Marth to sit on the couch with him.

          There had been a week of "maybe tomorrows," but Gaimen still had not picked either of them.

          "If I was just a bit younger…"  Roy said irritably to Marth, sometime around noon when they were eating.

          "Age is not what's keeping us from being picked – we're not pretty enough as women.  If he knew we were male, we'd be summoned every night."  Marth mused quietly.  "We may have to do something desperate if he doesn't pick one of us soon."

          "Well, I figured that, but this is just so irritating…  I just want to jump up and scream 'Pick _me!  I really want to kill you now!'"  _

          Marth smothered a snort, imagining Roy doing just that.

          "Perhaps not _that_ desperate…"

          "Hey, I wasn't trying to be funny."  Roy scowled.  "I don't have a sense of humor, remember?"

          "I know.  Neither do I."

          "Great, we're both rocks with no sense of charisma…"  The boy-general replied, examining his legs.  Funny, they looked a lot longer in the skirt.

          "Margaret and Miranda…"  Gaimen mused, stroking his short beard as he sat in his chambers.  

          For some reason that the false King could not identify, the two strange women had been plaguing his thoughts for the last week.  He simply had not been able to get them out of his head.  

          "There is just _something_ about them," he declared. "And it's not as if they're astoundingly beautiful women – they're not – but they seem so familiar…"

          Gaimen thought back to all the many people who he had slept with over the long years…  No, no that wasn't it…

          Abruptly, his mind stopped at Marth, his favorite among all his many partners.  Gaimen's ember-orange eyes widened as he came to a startling realization.

          "No…" He breathed. "It couldn't be Marth…"  But he had seen those eyes, those same intense blue eyes that promised death on the face of that girl.  Those eyes could only belong to one person, his beautiful nephew.

          But wait… somebody else also had those eyes.

          "If Miranda is Marth, then Margaret must be…" Gaimen thought for a moment, focusing on that rich auburn hair.  "Roy!  That arrogant little upstart!  I knew I never should have exiled them together…"  Gaimen growled, then a cruel smile curved his lips.

          "But think of the fun I can have with them…"  He chuckled deep in his throat.  "If you children think that you overpower me, then you are sadly mistaken."

          "You two…" A eunuch announced, stepping up to Marth and Roy and motioning to them. "Will be his Majesty's entertainment for tonight.  He says that he appreciates your _patience_."

          Roy stood slowly, but did not look at Marth so as not to rouse any sort of suspicion.  Everything had to go like clockwork.

          Marth stood as well, patting his hair somberly.

          "We are honored."  He spoke submissively, in a soft tone.  Inwardly, he was quivering with anticipation.  It was almost enough make him overlook the strangeness that Gaimen had conveniently picked them at the same time.  But there was no time to worry about that now as the two of them were led to Gaimen's chambers.  The door was locked behind them, the lights were low – everything seemed fine.

          "Welcome…"  Came Gaimen's deep, smooth voice.  He was seated in a large armchair in the room and was looking at the two young "girls" with a smirk on his face. "Strip completely of your clothes and place yourselves on the bed."

          Marth stood quite still, just looking at Gaimen through icy eyes.  Wordlessly, he unlaced the bodice and held the string in his hand.  It was painfully obvious now that he was _no_ kind of woman.

          Gaimen's smirk deepened and his orange eyes gleamed.

          "Hello Marth.  And Roy."

          "You knew all along?!  You sick bastard!"  Roy yelled, clenching his fists and stepping forward.  He then noticed at least half a dozen fully-trained guards waiting in the shadows, bearing the insignia of the elite king's personal guard.  "I'll tear you apart…"

          "Boy, I would _love_ to see you try.  Now, I am only going to ask you once more – strip completely and place yourselves on the bed."  

          Marth thought the situation through rapidly.  They had been caught and were now surrounded and outnumbered.  They could probably have taken them, but they were completely without weapons and revealing their magic at this point would have been unwise – their magic was their only trump card and they could not reveal it too soon.  The only logical thing to do was stand down.

          He sat on the bed, fully clothed and gestured for Roy to do the same.

          With a huff, Roy stripped off his shirt and false chest, throwing them to the ground and plopping on the bed a little ways from Marth.  He eyed Gaimen suspiciously.

          "Don't drag this out, Gaimen.  Get to the point – what are you doing to do with us now that we have returned after being exiled?  You won't get out of this alive!"

          The guards looked warily at Roy, sensing as he was being the more violent at the moment.  Already the room's temperature was rising.

          Gaimen laughed, gesturing for the guards to tie the youths up.

          "Do not threaten me idly, boy.  I may get offended by it."

          Marth sent a magical link to Roy, soothing him.

          '_If you don't control your powers, he'll get suspicious.  Our magic is the only trick we have up our sleeves – don't give it away.'_

          The boy-general gave Marth a look that simply said "Screw yourself" but did not struggle.  He closed his eyes tightly and worked on controlling himself.

          Gaimen walked over to Marth, roughly removing the prince's dress, running his hands over the cool, smooth skin.  Marth didn't movie, his face fixing itself into that scarily blank icy mask.  Gaimen frowned slightly, reaching up to touch Marth's sculpted lips.

          "So submissive…  I had expected more resistance from you, little princeling."

          Marth still didn't move, eyes empty and void of anything.  Gaimen's frown deepened and he let his hand drop.  His nephew was beautiful, but very frustrating at times.  He turned to Roy, his orange eyes catching sight of a strange jewel hanging from his old rival's throat.  

          "That is an interesting stone you wear, _General_.  Where did you come upon it?  If there are more, they are surely worth a fortune."  The king fingered the gem.

          "Don't touch it."  Roy jerked away, but his movements were limited because he, like Marth had his hands tied behind his back.  His eyes flashed dangerously and the flame within the ice grew brighter.  That was the _only_ present that he had from Marth and he didn't want Gaimen to touch _that as well.  "And don't touch Marth either."_

          Gaimen threw his head back and laughed at the general.

          "Initially, I had wondered what under the heavens kept the two of you together, but I had never guessed that the two of you were lovers.  Jealous lovers at that.  I do apologize Roy, but Marth was mine first."  He claimed Marth's lips with his own, ravishing the Prince's mouth.

          There was a tiny spark behind the ice in Marth's eyes and he twisted his body to kick Gaimen in the stomach, slamming him into the wall behind him.

          Gaimen grunted as the breath was knocked out of him and looked up at the two teens, eyes blazing with rage.

          "Take them to the dungeon."  He ordered his guards.

TBC…

Xan:  Heh!  I typed this entire thing up in one night- go me!  Jeez, the entire review thing had me freaked out.  None of them were showing up on ff.net, so I thought that nobody was reviewing until Vallen said  "Duh, you idiot go check the email." So I did and y'all DID review!  ^_^  I was so happy.  Oh yeah, there's a reference to Rocky Horror Picture Show in this chapter and whoever can find it gets extra ultra cool bonus points!  ^_^  

Vallen: She's so silly sometimes. But don't worry… I'm putting my loving touch on this one. ^^


	27. Warning

Fubuki no Kaen

Authors: Xan and Vallen

Rating: R

Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with eventual yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…

Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.

Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)

Xan:  *bows humbly and gives them chapter* To forgive is divine.  Gomen nasaiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!!

Vallen: *waves paper fans* Hai! 

Thank You:  Kanashimi Ame (Aw, sorry that you thought it slacked off while they were at Rowen's, but you're right, they are indeed in the castle now and ready to kick Gaimen's candy ass!  *blinks*  Oh jeez, I just said candy ass…  Too much tv, I tell you, it rots your mind.), Shea (I know, we are so mean to them…  But you guys have to like it or else you wouldn't read it, now would you?), Sake Girl Duelist (Haven't you figured it out yet?  We leave off there because we enjoy making you guys beg us for more!  We're rather sadistic, I think.  Oh well.  ^_^), FOmar Fan (Ooooh, mysterious!  I LIKE that adjective!  We'll try to keep it that way, aight?), Dark Comet (No, EVERYBODY'S reviews were going missing and boy howdy did it freak me out…  Yes, more fanart is ALWAYS appreciated!  ^_^  Ooh, Discworld is FUN!  I love Terry Prachett – he's so funny!  But yeah, it is cute when Roy gets all protective…), Pichu*Star (Yay, put us on alert!  We're glad that you're happy to see Gwen and that you hate Gaimen.  Even I hate him, he's not nearly as fun as Trave was.  And yes, FNOK 2 is coming along nicely!), Foame369 (We feel loved!), Ryuke-Naoe (*giggles*  Lakes of fire are always fun…  They don't do that, but stick around and find out what they DO do.), Sinnatious (Of course we don't stop!  We never stop!  …We just get delayed.  *coughs*  It's my fault this one took so long… I'm really sorry.  *laughs*  Post-FNOK therapy.  Love that!  Ooooh, treats!  …But I don't deserve 'em.  I'm bad for getting this one out so late.  Thanks though!), pannybaby123 (Heh he IS a bastard.  Not a RAT bastard like Trave, but certainly a bastard), LiL PriNCeSs Me (People forgetting to check up on us?  I'm hurt!  No, it's okay.  If we can be late getting 'em out, you can be late reading 'em.), tikimoof (Aw, I LOVE rocky horror!  Vallen and I are obsessed with it!), YoshiMars (I love cliffhangers- it's what I LIVE for!  ^_^  Yay, drawing is always good, even if it isn't fanart or even FE!  Keep drawing!), Hooshi (The best at ff.net?  WOW, that is a HUGE compliment!  *blushes*  And what about Marth?!), Chennie (*looks devious*  Of COURSE there will be ass-kicking?  You expect them to just walk up to Gaimen back "Please sir, may I have my kingdom back?"  How pathetic would THAT be?  *blinks*  Eh?  Dismemberment?  God no!  We like our boys [and gwen- she's got enough problems] to stay whole, thank you very much.), Kiki (Yay, we're somebody's new favorite!  Keep reading, it'll only get better!  And then there's the SEQUEL!  *dum dum dum…*), Kim (Hee hee, we love them in drag too, unfortunately, that's all the drag for this story.  Maybe in another one.  We'll just have to wait and see.), MarthLover618 (Dude, love your handle!  Thanks, we try to keep them "in character" as much as possible and I think that we do a damn good job, thank you very much.  We'll never stop writing!)

          "I'm gonna kill him…" The auburn-haired teen snarled, not caring who heard him.  He and his partner were shackled by their wrists to the thick stone walls of a cell in the deepest trenches of the castle dungeon.  

          Roy glanced over at Marth, who was chained to a separate wall.

          "You!  _Only_ you!  You are the only thing he wants!  I would be better off in this without you…" He continued, his tone somewhat accusing.  "He'll visit, torture you, have his way with you, leave, then do it all over again whenever he desires!  _How_ do you suggest we get out of here?  I can't burn stone and liquid-iron would hurt, don't you think?"  The teen seethed, drowning in his frustration.

          Marth stayed characteristically quiet, looking around at the blankness of the cell.

          "The only reason that he kissed me is because he knew that it would make you angry, which it did.  If I had told him not to touch you, he would have done just the opposite to anger and frustrate me.  He desires us both, Roy.  We are to him like two jewels dropping unexpectedly into a beggar's hand out of thin air.  And I _can_ get us out of here, if we have no other choice."

          "Well, I can't just be a _brick_ like you all the time, so…" Roy grumbled, closing his eyes and rattling his chains one final time as a fruitless display of rebellion.

          "Don't tell me you've lost hope."  Marth said quietly, looking right at Roy.

          "No…  I'm just really frustrated right now.  Can we just have some quiet for a little while…?"

          Marth relaxed into the chains, just as he had many times before over the past years.  This dungeon, this cell, for that matter was no stranger to him and he allowed the silence between them to hang.

          Later that night, the two prisoners had several visitors.  Not quite whom they had expected, for Gaimen was too busy for petty torture, even though it involved his two beauties.  A few guards came in, adjusted their bindings, and then got to work.  They were undoubtedly sworn to secrecy and silence, for they uttered no words other than stern commands.

          However, the sounds of leather striking against flesh were music to the twisted monarch's ears as he took a peek inside at his favorite exiled young men.  Perhaps repetitive torture would wear them down eventually…

          "Marth…" Roy panted once they had gone away, sweat dripping down his face.  "Is it just me or is this starting to remind you of Trave's?"  The teen hung his head and tried to take his mind off the pain on his back from both the new wounds and old wounds that had been viciously re-opened.

          "Trave?  Surely you cannot mean my old friend?"  Gaimen stalked over to where Marth and Roy were hanging, facing the wall with their wrists changed to it.  His eagerness and curiosity had overpowered his desire to remain hidden from view and watch their suffering.  Marth, who was kneeling on the ground, his wrists above his head, did not make the effort to turn or answer his uncle.

          _'Sure, let me __do all the talking…' Roy grumbled, and then lifted his head with a grunt, glaring at Gaimen.  "Correct.  We're damaged property, but that's none of your business.  You can join him in hell for all I care!"_

          "Oh, but it most certainly is my business.  You see, Trave was a wonderful old friend of mine and I often traveled to his manor to sample the entertainment that he provides so excellently there.  It's a pity that I hadn't known this; I'd have made the journey to see the two of you there.  Although I do not think that he would have been very willing to share with me."

          Gaimen walked over and ran his fingers across the wounds in Roy's back, smearing the general's blood onto them.  He raised them to his lips and licked the blood off.  

          "You killed Trave, didn't you Roy?  You are brave, clever enough to do it.  Marth is a coward.  Otherwise, he'd of put a stop to what I did to him years ago."

          Although Marth did not move, the room became noticeably colder.

          The auburn-haired teen hissed angrily, disguising the pain that came from Gaimen's fingers in his open wounds.

          "I guess you could say that," he said, his tone hostile. "You two share similar qualities… and you _both_ failed against me, oh demoted general.  Did you find a replacement for me or did you plan to take over _both our positions."_

          Gaimen let out a winsome sigh and dug his fingernails into one of Roy's open wounds.

          "Unfortunately, since your banishment, all the men who would be qualified for the job have all died in an unfortunate series of accidents.  Quite a pity, really.  A tragedy."

          All the men qualified…  Roy wondered in his head.  That meant Lieutenant Brock, the only paternal figure he had…  Plus several of his most skilled comrades.  He let out a pained groan and jerked away from the man, clenching his fists and trying to hide his anguish.

          "Marth…" He growled to his partner, inadvertently asking if it was time to use their magic yet.  "I don't have to take any of this."

          Marth let out a feral snarl and stood slowly, chains rattling.  It was the first movement that he had made since the torture had begun hours and hours ago.  It was obvious that he had had enough.

          "I know you don't, but please just wait – " Marth cut himself off with a cry of pain as Gaimen lashed a heavy whip across his already mutilated back.  Then the King turned and did the same to Roy.

          "Silence, both of you!"  He commanded sharply.

          "You hold _nothing over me, Gaimen!"  Roy yelled. "And Don't.  Touch. Marth!!!"_

          There was a loud spark as Gaimen's shirt caught on fire, a large blaze for such a short notice.  Roy pressed his hands against the wall, digging his nails into the stone.

          Marth slowly saw the world around him go black as ice; no something _colder_ filled his veins.  His eyes blazing blue, his face expressionless, he ripped the chains that bound him out of the wall as he turned.  Roy and Gaimen were the only things that he saw – everything else was black.

          Gaimen let out a yell of pain and began to rip off his burning clothing.  Abruptly, he discovered that he could no longer feel his hands or feet; it was as if they had frozen completely solid.  

          "Get out of here!  That was a warning, Gaimen!"  Roy yelled with a growl, banging his forehead against the wall. He was still until Gaimen stepped away, slamming the iron door shut with a clang.

          There was silence.

          Marth leaned against the wall for a moment before going over to Roy, touching him.

          _'Are you alright, Roy?'  _

          "Of course I'm alright…  All he did was scratch me," Roy snapped, moving away from his partner.  There was a sharp hissing sound of steam as tears trailed down the teen's face to wet the wall he pressed himself against.  "I can't…  There's only so much a person can take…  Marth…"

          Marth placed a hand on Roy's chains, making them so bitter cold that they shattered to the touch.  With a cool hand, he brushed Roy's tears away.

          "I know Roy.  We've bought ourselves some time, but Gaimen will come back, and when he does…  When he does, we won't get off again so easily."

          "But your Majesty, I simply cannot understand how in the world you managed to burn yourself and get such bad frostbite at the _same_ _time_."  The head Healer exclaimed, inspecting Gaimen's numb feet.

          The King growled, narrowing his eyes angrily.

          "Never you mind.  Just do what you have to do to fix it, understand?"

          "Yes your Majesty."  There was a long pause.  " . . ."

          "What is it?  Speak, fool!"  Gaimen ordered.

          "I'm afraid that we'll have to remove a few of your toes…  And there will be permanent scarring on your chest from the burns."  

          "What?!"  Gaimen's eyes smoldered with fury, glaring down at the Healer, who shrank away from the angry man.

          "I'm sorry, your Majesty…"

          Gaimen sat back with a growl.  "Just do it.  And be quick about it.  I have some loose ends that must be tied up immediately."

          Roy looked up suddenly from his spot on the floor, glancing over at Marth.  He'd gotten control over his emotions and was now back into his regular stoic persona.

          "Let me heal you…  And don't say no.  I need the practice."  He told Marth softly.

          Marth nodded and moved over to his General slowly due to his injuries.  The broken skin of his back and shoulders were covered in raw welts, most of which were oozing pus and blood.  Normally, such wounds would take weeks to heal.

          "I wasn't planning on refusing your offer."

          Roy didn't answer.  His pupils grew tiny and he focused on the whip wounds on his partners back, extending his hands.  A red-orange light flowed from his fingers to Marth's injuries, healing them until there were only small, thin marks in their place, mere scars to join those already on the pale skin.  Only when Roy felt the sweat that was dripping down his face did he realize when to stop.  Now he realized what Marth was talking about when he had mentioned magic exhaustion.

          "There…" Roy said breathlessly.  "I like this healing power… makes me feel useful.  Feel better?"

          Marth let out a quiet sigh of relief as a gentle, soothing heat spread across his back and shoulders, making his raw and broken skin come together and become blessedly whole and painless again.

          "Yes, much."  The former prince replied quietly, turning to his companion.  "Can I help you?  I cannot heal or anything, but I may be able to do something for you…"

          "Like what?"

          The auburn-haired teen lay down on his stomach with a heavy sigh, letting his face rest against the cool, dirty floor.  He could feel the gem around his throat hum comfortingly.

          "You'll have to battle Gaimen mostly by yourself…  Can I trust you to do that?  Once we break out of here and get our swords, we'll go get him, but I won't be able to do much besides defend myself."

          "Yes, I can take him myself, but don't expect him to be alive after.  Or in one piece."  Marth paused. "How were you intending for us to 'break out of here and get our swords?'"

          "I dunno.  When Gaimen comes back in here, angry as hell, we'll break out and make a run for it, I guess."  Suddenly, an epiphany dawned on Roy and he paled, his face flooding with realization. "_Oh_…"

          Marth looked at him, a single brow raised.  "What is it?"

          "We can't kill him ourselves.  As far as the country is concerned, we're still traitors and we'll only prove Gaimen right by murdering him.  They believe his word over ours any day…  They'll just hang us and find another ruler, possibly even worse."

          Marth closed his eyes, clenching his teeth.  Roy was right.  Dammit.

          "You are correct.  I had placed my own desires over the good of the country.  He must be put on trial," here he took a deep breath. "We could destroy the castle doing this, but I think I know of another way.  You remember where the swords are, don't you?"

          "We have to capture him and make him admit that he framed us and we're innocent…  But yes, I remember where the swords are."  Roy replied.

          "I believe I can provide ample distraction while you get them.  You have training in stealth, don't you?"

          Roy's eyes flashed.  "I have training in everything."

          _'Should have guessed.'_  Marth thought to himself.  "Good.  Then you won't have any trouble."  

          "No trouble."  Roy confirmed, pushing himself up into a sitting position.  Now all they had to do was wait.

TBC…

Xan:  Hoped you like that one.  The next one will be out MUCH MUCH sooner, I promise!  I was on vacation and couldn't get it out!  *sniffs*  I'm soorrrry!

Vallen: Psssht. Quit apologizing! This is almost the end! _That's_ what we should be sad about, not the horrible disappointment that our readers feel for us… .  


	28. Retribution

Fubuki no Kaen

Authors: Xan and Vallen

Rating: R

Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with eventual yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…

Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)

Notes:

Xan:  Aight, well here we go again!  Hope y'all like this one as much as you've been liking the others!  Btw, I did the thank you's (as usual).  Enjoy!

Vallen: Hmm… This is a fairly good chapter- It gets things moving along some more. Yay for plot. I just got home from a holiday and now a new chapter is out. Schweeet.

Thanks to:  Alexandra Radcliffe (BEST story on ff.net?  Wow, thanks!  And reading all 26 chappies in one day, that takes dedication!  I'm not even sure if I'VE done that…  And YES, we've converted another non-yaoi fan!  Gah, everybody likes Roy better.  Oh well, more Marth for me.  *huggles Marth*),  Jennie ("Freaking-ly wonderful chapter of angst" oh MAN that's definitely going into my favorite sayings list.  We're really pleased that you liked it, even if the angst is more Vallen's department.  *bows humbly to her*),  Ryuke-Naoe (Of course we have to leave you at a cliffhanger.  We have to have our fun too, you know.  ^_^  And yes, sadly it is almost the end.  I foresee only a few more chapters… MAYBE we'll get into the early thirties, but I'm not sure.  ^_^;;),  Sinnatious:   (Mm, praise xan & vallen, praise xan & vallen more!  [heh, sorry little 3x3 eyes reference there…]  Yes, the climax IS a great one, if we do say so ourselves.  The ending is very cool, I think you'll all enjoy it very much.  Oh and the Gaimen and Trave thing… Yeah, those two scumbags would naturally be friends.  Birds of a feather, ya know…  And we totally feel the love!), YoshiMars (Yep, the sequel is almost shaping up to be more fun than the original.  Scary ain't it?  You'll REALLY love that one.  Yay, drawing!  Any for us?  *hopeful*), Shea (Hm, confused?  That's not good… We try to keep things pretty clear, but we're glad you liked it anyways!), punk ikhny towryk (Thanks!  It only gets better, so keep reading, k?  *happy to find another marthxroy fan*), pannybaby123 (Oooh, you have NO idea how much Vallen liked that "he inspires the evilness that lives inside of me"  She was cackling and stuff…  It was scary.  Here's the next chapter for ya!  Enjoy!), Dark Comet (Ha!  Hypocrite!  *coughs*  Sorry, couldn't help myself.  *giggles*  Yes, smack that bastard with a fish… and lay one on Trave too.  *snicker*  Yes, Marth is VERY lucky.  I'm not sure if Vallen realized the implications of that statement when she wrote it, but I got the same impression.  Oh, and the sequel is already started and coming along nicely.  We do need to work more on it though.), Pichu*Star (*is huggled*  ^_^  Good, we knew that y'all'd kill us if we just ended FNOK like we do without writing another one.  And FNOK 2 has been in the works for a LONG time, guys.  And as for Gaimen's fate you'll just have to wait and see what our boys decide to do with him.  *grin*), hooshi (No, no lemon in this fic, sorry.  Wait for the sequel, there's some citrus in that one.  ^_^  Gr…  They're EQUALLY hot.),  Riku (Ack…  Did we ever email you?  If anybody did, it was Vallen, so…  I'll talk to her about it.  I'm really sorry if we didn't!), Sake Girl Duelist (^_^  Look, it's Gaimen bonfire!  And you KNOW why we make you wait.), Mistral 2003 (Ack, another email thing…  Again, Vallen would be the one to ask and she's out of town right now, so…  I'll check with her ASAP.  And no, you didn't write anything wrong.),  The Flame Panther (*laughs*  Okay, not reviewing is okay if it's cause you wanna get to the next chapter.  And THANKS!), Veste Notus (*bows*  You're very welcome!  We take a lot of pride in keeping the quality of our work up to our own high standards and we're glad that you appreciate it.), LilFillipinoGurl (Nope, no kissing!  That means that y'all appreciate it more when we LET them smooch.), MarthLover618 (Yes, they have a PLAN!  Run away!  Nah, just kidding.  We all know that the hot guys always triumph over the bastardly uncle.  It's the rules.  We just have to put them through a lot of angst shit before that!  ^_^), Random Gray Tile (Thank you very, very much.  Like I said above, we really try hard to push our writing beyond the norm and make our fics stand out.  To hear that our story merits its own site…  Wow.  I had no idea that our once little story would eventually grow to THAT.  For this fic in particular, we were pushing for realism [well, as real as a sword-&-sorcery tale gets], which includes showing the little people.  Please keep reading, we appreciate your comments.  ^_^), tikimoof (Yeah, cross-dressing is fun, but the story needed to move on…  And yes, it's almost over, but there is another Marth & Roy adventure after this, so no worries!)

          The next morning was when Gaimen decided to appear before Marth and Roy again.  He stood tall and imposing, his stance radiating fury as he shouted at them from the other side of the steel bars.

          "Tell me how that happened!"

          "How what happened?"  The boy-general asked, playing dumb and enjoying every minute of it.

          "You know what I'm talking about, Boy!"  Gaimen yelled back, flinging open the gate.  He wore a tunic, but one could easily discern the bandages around his chest beneath. They had obviously hurt him severely.

          Without warning, Roy leapt and ran for the older man.  Gaimen jumped aside, still spooked and wary of the two teens, allowing Roy to duck past him and take off down the hall.  It was all as Marth and Roy had planned.

          "Catch him!  Don't let him escape!"  Gaimen began to roar angrily, turning to start after the General.  He was stopped by his nephew seizing the back of his tunic and whirling him around.

          "Let go of me!"  Gaimen snarled, glaring at Marth and trying to squirm out of his touch.

          A small smile quirked a corner of Marth's mouth.

          "No.  I've waited a long time to do this, Uncle and I am not about to let you run away from me now."

          "Are you calling me a coward, _Marth_?"  Gaimen reached back, clenching his huge fist to punch his nephew as hard as he could.

          Marth caught his fist easily and squeezed, causing the twisted tyrant to howl in pain.  Marth's skin was blistering cold – welts were forming on his burned fist.  The prince smirked inwardly.  All the training sessions with Rowen were paying off now.  The Weather Mage was about Gaimen's size and physical match, so he had plenty of practice against opponents that were larger and stronger than he was.

          '_And Gaimen doesn't have magic either.'  Marth thought with a smirk, digging his fingers into Gaimen's flesh._

          Gaimen choked back a scream and broke away from his nephew, fumbling for the blade around his waist.

          "What _are you?!"_

          Marth allowed himself a small, evil chuckle, his eyes glittering dangerously.

          "The true King of Altea."

          Roy panted heavily as he raced through the castle halls with several guards from the dungeon and others that he had picked up along the way at his heels.

          "You there!  Halt!"  They shouted at him.

          '_I can't.  Not now.'  He thought, not even glancing back to see how many there were now._

          It was day, the windows were open and anyone could see him.  He was bare-chested, the wounds on his back gaping and flaring as he ran, the skirt still fluttering around his legs.  Granted, he had ripped it a little up the sides so that he could run, but it was still uncomfortable.  Roy made it up to the place where Marth had shown him the swords, streaking past startled harem girls and boys and doubling back after seizing the hidden swords.

          Now he had to face the guards and using effort and skill, he took most of them down, inflicting minor and major injuries using just his bare body, but it still took the time he did not have to waste.  He finally reached the dungeons where Marth was battling his uncle.

          "Marth, here!"  He shouted, tossing a sword hilt-first to his partner.

          The Prince caught it neatly in one hand, savoring the feeling of a blade in his grasp once again.  Granted, this sword was by no means Falcion, but it would no doubt serve its purpose.  The action gave Gaimen time enough to draw his own sword.  With a furious yell, he swept it down upon Marth, who countered quickly.  The two swords shrieked as mental grated against metal.

          "You're stronger, Marth.  What have you been doing all these long months?"  The false King sneered, pushing down on Marth's sword with his own with all his formidable weight.  

          '_How in the hells did he get so strong?'  Marth heard Gaimen's frantic thought clearly and smiled to himself.  _

          '_Roy, help.'  He thought to the general._

          Roy nodded and cut in, slashing at Gaimen's sword arm to handicap him.  He knew the false King fought best with both hands, but if one was out of the way…

          "Back off," he growled.

          Gaimen returned the growl and jumped back, blood pouring from his injured arm.

          "You'll pay for that, you little rodent…" He snarled at Roy.  Marth slashed at his uncle's face, slicing a thin wound on his cheek there.

          "Don't insult Roy."

          "It doesn't matter!"  Roy snarled back, tiny droplets of sweat trailing down his face.  He could hear the pounding of boots against the stone and wood floors – guards were coming.  The boy-general let out a yell and plunged the sword into Gaimen's shoulder, high enough to miss his heart, but enough to subdue him.  

          Seeing that Roy had Gaimen under control for the moment, Marth turned to face the guards who were running into the room.

          "Stop!  I am Prince Marth!"  He commanded.  They paused for a moment, some lowering their weapons a bit.

          "He's an imposter!"  Gaimen shouted, shoving Roy into a wall roughly.

          The auburn-haired teen let out a groan, dropping his sword and the wounds on his back were aggravated and dirt worked deep into them.  He didn't bother to get up again.

          "No!"  Roy snarled from his place on the ground. "That is the real Marth and I am the real Roy, your former commander!  We were unjustly exiled and seek fair trial!"

          The guards looked undecided.  Marth turned to Gaimen, enraged and knocked him down to the floor.  Gaimen's sword flew out of his hand and Marth kicked it far out of his reach.  He wanted badly to go to Roy, but this came first.

          He held his sword to Gaimen's throat, daring the guards to try to stop him with his icy-blue eyes glittering dangerously.

          "Say it," he hissed softly, staring down at Gaimen, daring him to disobey as well. "Tell them who we are."  

          Gaimen choked, staring up the blade at Marth with fear present in his orange eyes.

          "You are the real Prince Marth and he is High General Roy…" He grated. "Let me up…"

          Marth pressed the point of the sword into Gaimen's skin.  Blood blossomed and spilt onto the floor.  The false king gagged.

          "Swear it."  Marth commanded.

          "You are King!"  Gaimen gasped. "I swear it is the truth!  Release me!"

          The guards turned to Marth.  One of them, obviously the leader by the crest on his uniform saluted.

          "We hoped for your return, your Majesty."

          "Secure the traitor in the strongest cell and inform the people what has happened."  Marth stepped away from Gaimen and a few guards rushed forward to take him away.

          Finally, Marth dropped to one knee, crouching down beside his companion.

          "Fetch a healer!"  He ordered the chief guard.  The man rushed off, leaving the two of them alone.

          "Roy," Marth said softly, touching his general's face lightly. "You need to get up."  He pulled the boy up into a sitting position, being mindful of his wounds.

          Roy bit his lip hard, suppressing any noises he could make.  It was also to keep himself from crying out of sheer relief.  He had been swamped with emotions lately…

          "We did it…" He whispered, closing his eyes with a wince.  "I never thought I could feel this happy or relieved.  Thank you, Marth."

          The prince allowed Roy to lean on him.

          "Don't thank me yet.  This is far from over."

          A healer rushed into the room and began fussing over the two of them, especially Roy.

          "Hey!"  Roy cried, pushing him away. "Just bandage it, okay?  I need to be able to move around!  Marth, what do we do now?"

          Marth rubbed his temples, and then stood.

          "What is your name?"  He asked of the guard chief who had brought the healer.

          "Farro, your majesty."

          "Farro, inform every noble in the city and surrounding provinces that I am holding audience and expect to see _all_ of them there with no exceptions.  And the general and I desire full meals and baths before seeing anyone else."  Marth sounded once again like the king that he was supposed to be, but his appearance belied his exhaustion.  What little was left of his skirt was in tatters and he was covered in bruises and scrapes, many of which were bleeding.  His face was slightly pale and his hair disheveled, giving him the appearance of a gutter waif instead of a royal.

          Farro bowed.  

          "Yes, your Majesty.  I shall inform the servants to prepare them for you at once."

          Marth nodded, tired, then stopped.

          "There is one serving girl, a young woman by the name of Gwen.  Have her sent to my chambers once we have bathed and eaten."

          Farro bowed again before running off to do as Marth ordered.

          Roy coughed, leaning against a wall for support.  His appearance was quite similar to Marth's, except for the fact that he had white bandages wrapped around his torso.  One would have laughed at the sight of him in a skirt if it weren't for the serious look upon his face.

          "Oh great…  A meeting.  What should I do?  I don't exactly live here, but I guess I should go to the barracks to see if some of my stuff is still there, huh?"

          "You live here now."  Marth said, exhaust creeping into his voice. "My first official act as the reinstated sovereign is to declare you returned to your former rank and give you chambers here.  I need you here in the castle with me, Roy."  Marth took a deep breath, trying to wrap his mind around all that had happened.  He slid down to the floor. "You don't have to go to the meeting."

          "Oh…  Thank you…  Your Highness."  Roy caught Marth's eye and managed a smile.  It was the first time that he had said the title without a subservient _and contemptuous tone.  "And yes, I have to go to the meeting.  I'll meet you in the council room in an hour."  With that, he left._

          Marth made a small, happy noise as he slid into the large tub full of cold water.  For the ten minutes that the bath would last, it would be heavenly.  

          '_I just dread what comes next,' he thought as he washed his hair. '_I always knew that I would have to do it, but I am not looking forward to it_.'_

          When he was clean, really truly clean for the first time in months, he stepped out of the bath and dried himself with a soft, fluffy towel.  Then he pulled on some clothing that had been set out for him in his favorite dark blue and silver.

          '_I need to send someone to retrieve the horses and things.'  He thought, so that he would not forget later._

          "Your Majesty, I've brought the servant girl that you wished."  Farro poked his head in and told Marth.

          "Thank you, Farro, bring her in."  Marth tied his long hair back and pulled on a small silver crown.  

          The small blonde girl, seemingly younger than she looked with her innocent heart-shaped face, wide green eyes and pale skin looked frightened as she was ushered into the room.  Once she saw Marth in his proper clothes and wearing his crown, she fell to her knees.

          "Your Highness!"  Gwen gasped.  "Is there something you require of me?"

          Marth walked over to Gwen and kneeled on the ground beside her.  

          "Gwen, I told you that I would reward you for all that you have done for Roy and I and now I am making good on that promise.  Henceforth, you are my personal servant and no man will ever mistreat you again without answering to me for it."  

          "Oh my…" Gwen breathed, tears rolling down her face.  "You repay me too much, Sir."  Then she remembered what she now was.  "What is my first task?"

          "Find High General Roy and inform him that I'll meet him in the Council Room in a few minutes.  I need to speak to him privately before it starts."

          "I shall, Sir!"  The girl cried.  She got up and bowed several times before rushing off.

To Be Continued…

Xan:  *whew*  I typed all of this one up in one night!  The thank you's and everything.  Well, I've marked the fic…  there are only three more chapters left after this one, guys!  So enjoy it while you can!  *sobs into Vallen's shoulder*  Our baby's almost OVER, Vallen!

Vallen: *sobs as well* Three?! Just three?! It can't be… I demand a re-count. (^^)

PS. SHAMLESS self-promotion alert: We updated our other (non-yaoi) fic as well, Marth and Roy on the High Seas! Check it out!


	29. Condemn

Authors: Xan and Vallen   
Rating: R  
Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…  
Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.  
Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)

Notes:

Xan:  My GOD there were SO many thankyous to type up, but keep 'em coming!  It was so cool!  We have almost 500 reviews now!  I wonder if it'll ever get that high with only 2 more chappies left now…  We can always hope, right?  This is an important chapter, so read carefully guys!  Hope ya love!

Vallen: This is SO awesome! Two more… Two more… 

A very important announcement: Make sure you visit our new website! Go to our user info for the link!

Thanks to:  Jennie (Shway, we're heros!  'Course, I'd rather be a villain, but I won't complain.  It's funny hearing somebody telling us to finish it soon instead of telling us NEVER to finish.  ^_^), punk ikhny towryk (*giggles*  Maracas!  That's awesome!  And yes, Gwen is great!  We're glad everybody likes her so much 'cause she's really important to Marth and Roy.  And we needed a girl character in this fic.  ^_^;;), LilFilipinoGurl (Yes, only two more now…  Wow, it'll be scary when there's only one left.  Then how will y'all be?  Oy…  And yes, there will be kissing in the next one, never fear), The Flame Panther (No no, don't wither away!  You still have to read the next one and review!  Is it so bad that a great fic only has three chapters left, but there's an entire nother sequel coming up?  Maybe even longer than the first?  [erm, that's not a promise, so don't hold us to it or anything…]  ^_^;;), Sinnatious (^_^  Yep, I was proud to get that one out so fast!  Go Xan!  Oh, and we have a sappy level alert that goes off whenever we get close to the limit.  That's how it works.  That and their relationship doesn't make for much sappiness, so…), Sake Girl Duelist (*cracks up* that was great!  Oh, I have to write that down…), Pichu*Star (Yes, King Bastard finally got his ass handed to him.  I don't know why, but the thought of him having a few toes gone really amused me, so I stuck it in.  Yes, pirates rock!  ^_^), tikimoof (Bwaha!  Foiled your plot, did we?!  Actually, it was because I had been feeling guilty about not updating in ages and I was bored one night, so I typed them both up.  And yes, the skirts are gone!  No more skirts!), pannybaby123 (yep, they're gonna live together in the castle…  cute ain't it?  Hopefully that's on the safe side of sappy…), MarthRoyFan (Aw, sorry about that, but no more kissing.  They're too _busy to just sit around and smooch!), Yami Hikari the Elf (Mmm…. "perfection"  We like that word.  It ISN'T perfect, actually, but we're certainly glad you think so!  It's always good to meet more diehard Marth and Roy fans!  Be sure to keep reading!), GSfailure (Yep, buncha chappies up since you reviewed last!  Glad to see you're back though!  *types like a madman*), Shea (Sorry!  Don't cry!  Yes, all good stories come to an end, but this good story has a sequel!), Crockgirl13 (I'm typing as fast as I can for you!), Dark Comet (Oh no!  That sucks!  We'll just try to imagine what it said, okay?  Don't worry too much about it- ff.net's been kinda screwy so it's okay.  And I'm updating as fast as I can!  Good thing it's summer…), Ryuke-Naoe (Wai, chibi fanart!  We'd love to see it, but don't stress 'bout it, okay?  Glad you liked it!), YoshiMars (Mmm, I like the interaction between Marth and Gwen too…  They have a really nice relationship that develops more later on.  Marth and Roy aren't out of the woods yet, but just keep reading!)_

          Gwen and Roy appeared in the specified room, the Council Chamber a few minutes later.  Gwen looked quite pleased with herself, the satisfaction of doing a good job for her new master showing in her face.

          "I found him, your Highness!"

          Thank you, Gwen.  Excellent job."  Marth told her approvingly, pleased to see that her beaten morale had already risen a tiny bit.  

          Roy straightened himself with a cough.  He looked alive again, wearing royal blue pants, shined brown boots and a rich red long-sleeved shirt.  His hair was still damp, held back by his tried-and-true headband and the bandages on his torso were well-hidden by his clothes.  

          "Hello, Marth.  I haven't seen you in a while…" The teen greeted smoothly, referring to the other side of Marth, the Prince.

          "I don't believe anyone has.  I haven't seen you in a while either, _General_ Roy."  

          Roy nodded curtly, looking around the grand room.  The floor was fine, veined white marble upon which was a long, rectangular table carved of dark brown mahogany.  Nobles had not yet started to filter into the room, so they were quite alone for now.  

          "Did you summon me for a reason?"

          "Many of these nobles had to have helped Gaimen overthrow us.  We must punish them accordingly and set an example to others.  I wish to eradicate all traces of his reign, starting with his conspirators."  

          "Are you saying that we'll execute the guilty, starting with Gaimen?"  The boy-general questioned, his voice not revealing whether he approved of Marth's methods or not.

          Marth closed his eyes.

          "Yes.  I cannot rule if I know that my peers helped to sell us into slavery.  A king must be able to trust his advisors and nobles, just as they must be able to trust their king."

          "It sounds like the right thing to do.  Don't hesitate – I have a feeling that whatever you decide will be the right choice."  Roy spoke calmly, then frowned.  "I am getting into the habit of acting stuck-up _way_ too fast."

          "Gwen, another job for you.  You are to inform Roy exactly when he is being stuck-up."  Marth said, a tiny smile quirking his lips.

          The girl looked horribly surprised, but could not refuse.  

          "But I…"

          "Oh, now that's real mature, Marth.  Grow up."  Roy retorted, brushing past the prince and soon to be king and taking a seat at the long table.

          "You said it, not I."  Marth told him, sitting at an ornately carved throne-like chair at the head of the table.  As a younger man, he had thought of procuring a round table when he became king so that all of the council could have an equal seat, but now as a monarch returning from disgrace, he was glad at the opportunity to look down at his betrayers.  His amused expression changed instantaneously as the first of the nobles walked warily into the room.

          "Have a seat, gentlemen."  Roy said stiffly, but quite loud enough so that they could hear them.  

          They eyed the two young men, but sat at the table as per Roy's orders.  Many of them were old and wise and they knew full well that by the end of this meeting that there would be several more necks for the gallows.  This method of execution was crude and often inhumane, but it was also fairly quick and effective.  Plus, the people of Altea could see the traitors die like the scum they were.

          "Gwen, kindly remain near the door.  This may become unpleasant and I do not wish for you to be harmed."  Marth told the girl.  She nodded and moved obediently to that place.  The nobles who had heard his words flinched inwardly.  This did not bode well for them.

          '_You do have guards posted outside, do you not?'  Marth sent to his general._

          Roy glanced over at Marth and gave him a curt nod.  He cleared his throat to catch the attention of all the men present at the table.

          "Listen up.  It would make this a whole lot easier if you would just come forward and reveal yourselves.  Which of you conspired with Gaimen?"

          All of the nobles in the room sat up straighter, unnerved by Roy's plain speech.  They stared first at the general, then at Marth, wondering why it was this child who claimed to be a general speaking to them instead of the prince himself.

          Marth merely looked back at them, his hard blue eyes clearly awaiting their answers.

          "None of us, your Majesty.  We have no idea what you speak of."  One finally spoke up and the others around him nodded, speaking their agreement.

          The room became noticeably colder at Marth's hands tightened on the carved arms of the chair.

          "Be advised that it is your best interests to be truthful."  He said icily.

          Roy did not want to come off as a loud-mouthed sidekick, so he kept his mouth shut.  He took a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment and prepared to listen as the pompous men said whatever they could to try to save their sorry hides.

          "Your Highness, we had no idea that Gaimen plotted this behind our backs!  We know nothing!"  Another exclaimed, a note of panic rising in his voice.

          "I really _must emphasize the fact that Gaimen himself has told us the names of quite a few of the traitors amongst your ranks, so it would be wise to admit to your deeds rather than be taken and tortured until the truth is beaten from you."  Marth's voice was eerily calm, his eyes gleaming, daring any of them to challenge him.  It was a lie, of course, but it was a very good, convincing lie and it would probably encourage some of the very guilty parties to confess._

          True to Marth's predictions and hopes, a few men stepped forward and began confessing their crimes and naming others in the conspiracy, much to the horror and anger of some of their mates.

          Marth gestured,

          "General Roy, I believe that you have men standing by to apprehend these men?"

          "Of course."  Roy replied, standing and walking to the doors.  Gwen moved quickly to let him pass.  A dozen armored guards hurried in, holding their weapons and awaiting orders.

          "These men," the general began. "Are guilty of crimes against Altea and its king.  Keep them incarcerated until they are ready to be hanged."

          The guilty men protested loudly, their faces becoming red and angry.

          "You can't do that to us!  We are members of the Altean aristocracy!"

          A tiny smile quirked Marth's lips, one that the nobility should have recognized as a bad sign.  That smile held nothing but danger for them.

          "Oh dear, I seem to have forgotten.  Perhaps that long period while I was a _pleasure slave_ has done things to my memory."

          "Ha.  I wager that you liked it too much, you little whore."  An older man sneered, stroking his beard.

          "Take them," Roy ordered before Marth could reply to that.  As commanded, the guards, with some difficulty, led the traitors away.  They still protested loudly even as the door was shut.

          "General, please take note that I would like to supervise the punishment of that last man myself."  Marth said too calmly before turning back to the remaining men.

          "I _trust that the rest of you have nothing to hide?"  He stated._

          They all shook their heads, muttering negatives and eyeing him warily.

          "Good.  Then you won't object to being interrogated just to be safe.  Thank you, that will be all for now."  He nodded to the guards, who led the rest of the nobles from the room, leaving Roy, Marth and Gwen alone once again.

          The girl was characteristically silent, waiting until she was spoken to or given permission to speak.  Her fragile nerves were shaken up a bit, but she was fine otherwise.  Roy on the other hand, had gotten up and started pacing.  He stopped himself and glanced up at Marth.

          "So that's it?  All we have to do now is watch them die?"  The boy-general questioned.  "I can take care of that."

          "No, there must be a trial."  Marth sank back into his chair, rubbing his temples with a thumb and forefinger.  "The people themselves will decide our fates now.  But I have faith in them."

          "Oh.  And you'll finally be crowned king if that goes well, right?"  Roy questioned, walking up to Marth and placing a hand on his shoulder.  He touched the royal's face gently, pulling Marth's hands off his temples and replacing them with his own.  He could make headaches go away, he thought.

          Marth closed his eyes and made a noise of pleasure and appreciation in his throat.

          "Yes.  I will be crowned king at last."

          "Must feel good to finally achieve one of your goals."  The general murmured, removing his hands. "Are you going to be okay, giving your testimony and talking about everything that happened in front of the people?"

          "I'll be fine.  You needn't worry yourself about me." Marth answered. "But what about you?  Are you prepared to reclaim your old position?  I'm making you my second-in-command, you know."

          "No problem," Roy retorted. "I'm actually glad to be getting more responsibilities – I don't like feeling idle.  And I'm really looking forward to having a room in the castle.  Thank you…  Oh and this thing is all over, don't hesitate to give me work to do."

          The boy-general bit his lip, looking away.  He knew the trial would not be easy, but they would be called murderers and guilty of treason if Gaimen and his conspirators weren't found guilty first by proper trial."

          "I'm afraid that I'm going to give you all the work that you can handle and then some for quite a while, my general."  Marth steepled his hands and gazed thoughtfully at nothing. "I have traveled through my country and I have not liked what I have seen.  There will be changes and I need your help to implement them."

          "I'll leave you to think about them, then.  You can keep Gwen with you, but I'm going to go somewhere for a little while until the prisoners and the gallows are assembled."  

          Without giving Marth time to answer, Roy walked out.  Even though he was supposed to be in the castle, he still didn't really feel like he belonged there.  It would take some time, he thought.  So instead he went to the soldiers' barracks.

          Marth shuddered inwardly at the mention of the word gallows.  Kings whose reign had begun with so many executions had rarely been good rulers in the past.  Marth wanted desperately to be a good king, to wash the blood and despair from his country, but would he ever be able to wash it from his own hands?

          The prince groaned, feeling the headache slowly return.  What he really wanted was to be back at Rowen's.  He missed the privacy and tranquility of the wilderness, the simplicity of it.  Now everything was complicated.

          "Oh."  Marth looked up at Gwen, having just remembered something.  "Gwen, send word that Colonel Sanders and Colonel Brently of the Altean army shall also be tried in the court, please."

          "I will…  I'll just go tell them by word because I…  I can't write.  The captain of the guard needs that information, right?"  The servant girl asked quietly, fingering the hem of her ratty shirt.  She was afraid of men, but she would be brave for the person she served.

          "Ah.  I'll write it down, then.  Remind me later to procure proper garb and lessons for you."  Marth scribbled down the order and handed it to the girl.  "Hurry along now."

          Gwen smiled a bit and ran off quickly, leaving the future king to himself, alone in the room.

TBC…

Xan:  *bursts into tears… again* Only two left!  Our baby is so…  so…  WAH I'M SO PROUD OF IT!  *goes off to type more*  

Vallen: *stares at Xan* And she didn't even mention her own "Colonel Sanders" joke… *puzzled*


	30. Trial

Fubuki no Kaen

Authors: Xan and Vallen

Rating: R

Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…

Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.

Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)

Notes:

Xan:  *yaaaaawn*  This one took a bit longer than usual to type up!  Then again, it IS 3 in the morning.  ^_^;;;  Hey, we never said we were sane!  Besides, this is the best time to do it!  I did all the thankyous this time (again) and thanks again for making this such a great fic experience! 

Vallen: We love you! 

Thanks To:  Sinnatious (^_^;;  Xan is notorious for her deplorable love of baaad puns.  It annoys Vallen, but she let me keep my Col. Sanders one in there, so I was really happy.  Hm, I dunno…  We may and we may not, you'll just have to see.  ^_^  And yes, that funny Marth comment- mine too!  I do all the humor!  Bwaha!  And yeah, Gwen rocks.), GSfailure (Heh!  What usually happens is I type up the entire chapter [each chapter consisting of 10-12 or so written pages] in a night.  That includes typing up all these thankyous and everything, so it takes a while.  I really hope we do get 500 reviews!  That would just be so cool!), Jennie (Yeah, I didn't like it when those icky people insulted my Marth!  *gr*  Vallen did that, so you can thank her.  *mini-glare at vallen*  She just likes torturing the characters, and who can blame her?!  It's a ton of fun!  And after this, there's only one more chappie, so you'll be reading the sequel soon!), LilFilipinoGurl (*sobs too*  Actually, I'm not sad!  I'm really happy that it's almost done and that y'all get to see the other one!  It's just as good, if not better!  But I guess y'all have to decide that.  Oh, and Marth thanks you for your support!), Pichu*Star (^_^  So did I, but I think Roy was less than amused.  Yes, the dynamics between Gwen and Marth are really interesting to write…  I like how they interact with one another.  This is a big factor in the sequel too, so I'm glad that y'all like it so much.  Gwen is very important to Marth…  She and Roy and Rowen are his "supports."), The Flame Panther (Aw, don't wither away!  There's still an entire 'nother fic of Marth and Roy goodness!  And Gwen and Rowen and everybody else!  And of course they'd count…  All reviews count!  Well, your waiting has been rewarded, 'cause here it is!), tikimoof (Eeearly on in the fic, there was a character named Sanders.  Well, I turned him into a Colonel, so he became Colonel Sanders, as in the Kentucky Fried Chicken guy…  Nah, we think the fic is exactly the right length, not too long or too short.  And yes, it IS a relief when you get to the end of a harrowing story like this one is…  If you think it's emotional to read, try WRITING it.  We had to BE Marth and Roy and let me tell you, it made for one hell of a roller-coaster ride.  And the sequel is worse.  ^_^;;  And yes, we are!  In fact, we did!  Did you read part 3?  Or if you already read that, we'll hopefully be updating it again soon, so just be patient please!), hooshi (Hm…  Gwen…  Gwen was pretty badly mistreated and stuff, so I think at one point she WAS sexy and may still be, but at this point, she's to scared to really be attractive…  I dunno, Gwen is Vallen's department, so ask her.  And yes, we all know that you think that Roy is hot!), Sake Girl Duelist (No kidding!  Roast the bastards!), MarthLover618 (I certainly HOPE you still like!  I'd hate it if y'all read the whole fic just to be disappointed with the ending…  That would be horrible.), Shea (*sympathetically* Yes, I'm sure that there are only two.  Maybe Vallen and I will write a final "Behind FNOK" thingie after it's done, but we'll see.  Glad you're looking forward to the sequel- it's gonna be great!), rosekurama (Yep, we're sorry it's almost over too, but not THAT sorry.  It's nice to actually FINISH something.  Yeah, check out our other stuff.  Glad ya like it!), AsMiLiNgFoOl (Meh… We can't have that happen, now can we?), YoshiMars (*bows* We hope to please you in the sequel as well! We have become willing slaves for our readers!), kyuusei (Hehe… Yes, that was VERY intentional… I bet it was fun reading all those chapters! Please don't forget about us!), Asudem (Don't worry, we'll never stop.    Glad to see you so engrossed in it!), and LiLPrNCeSsMe (Gah!  Three chapters?!  *pats head*  It's okay, we

forgive you as long as you keep reading and don't forget about us! Ugh, I had to take summer school too...  Gym.  Oh well, better than during the year, at least I think.  And you're not a bad fan!).

          An hour or so later, far on into the afternoon, Roy returned.  Several soldiers, including Farro, were at his heel and dressed in their formal wear.  The general beamed energy and strength – he looked truly happy to be back in his rightful position.

          "Highness?"  He called with a cough from the doorway of Marth's bedroom to alert the prince that he was there. "Everything is ready."  

          But while the young general looked refreshed and invigorated, his prince looked just the opposite, haggard and worn, his face resembling that of a much older man.  But his expression lightened a little when he caught sight of Roy and his company and he stood to greet them.  As he did, they could see that Marth too had changed into his formal garb – a pair of elegant black breeches and a black shirt beneath a royal blue velvet tunic with a midnight blue cape with silver lining and the Altean crest emblazoned on it, also in silver.  Falcion was sheathed at his side and his sleek blue hair, which had been washed and trimmed in the meantime, was being held back by an ornate silver coronet.  All in all, it provided a very dramatic display, revealing the king whom Marth would soon become.

          "Good.  Let us depart then."  He walked over to Roy, inclining his head to the guards, who all bowed to him.  The boy-general shook Marth's hand firmly then led him down the halls.  The other guards seemed faintly shocked that Roy did not bow down to the prince, but Marth was not surprised.  He found that he did not want Roy to bow to him.  Roy was his equal, equal in hardships, equal in triumph.  He had said long ago in Trave's dark manor that they were the same and that statement still stood.  

          "It has all been set up in city square and the Lord Judge is there.  I found out that he has been away from the capital for all this time, so Gaimen cannot have brainwashed him."  Roy informed Marth in a businesslike manner, signaling for a few castle guards to open the main gates so that they could get outside.

          There was a huge crowd of people gathered in the square, their dirty bodies and faces and ragged clothes showing their starvation and despair.  They shouted loudly once they caught sight of Marth, their voices jumbled and mixed as one tortured mass.  Some cried for relief while still others were angry and shouted that Marth was the true traitor.  They began to move towards Marth and Roy like a swarm of bees.

          "Quiet!"  Roy yelled loudly, holding up a hand and standing in front of Marth protectively.  "Make your judgment _after_ the trial!"

          The peasants backed down, admonished by Roy's words and allowed the royal and the soldiers to go inside the court.  

          The High Court of Altea was a large, historic building, one of the oldest in the country's history.  Impressively carved of huge blocks of stone, there were several statues of Altean deities and past rulers, looking down on the people.  In recent months, the structures had fallen into disrepair and several of the statues were broken.  They will be fixed soon, Marth thought.  He recalled sitting in on several important trials before, learning how to be a just and fair ruler.  And now, he was on trial himself.

          Challen Ayensburk, the Lord Judge was already seated in the judge's seat, his serious grey eyes observing all the people.  Marth nodded to him and the old man nodded back.  Challen had been High Judge of Altea for several decades and as a man well into his seventies, was still highly respected for his keep judgment, sharp wisdom and strong presence.  

          "Are you nervous?"  Marth asked Roy quietly as he sat in his chair.

          "Terrified, but keep that between you and me."  Roy whispered back, sitting at a smaller table facing the judge's stand.

          Gaimen was brought in then, his face a mask of anger and fury, but he kept it in for now.  It would not be becoming nor helpful to his case to lose one's temper at the beginning of the trial.  Upon seeing that all of the vital people were in position, Challen banged his gavel once to call attention, nodding to Marth and Roy once again.

          "You will all swear upon the crown and give your testimonies," he announced.  Everyone fell silent, even the peasants who had managed to actually acquire seats in the courtroom.

          "I will testify first," Gaimen said in a low voice that was more of a growl than anything.  The tall man stepped up and swore upon the Altean king, which was placed on a pedestal especially for it.  He stood there, with all eyes in the room focused upon him.

          "I was born as the former King Cornelius's younger brother and as per royal custom, if any trouble or harm should befall the King, Queen or Heir, I would rise to power, which is precisely what happened.  The prince and his highest-ranking general were charged with high treason against the crown and exiled from the country for life, a mild punishment for the crimes that they conspired to commit, if you ask me.  The economy was failing under the prince's rule and he obviously had no idea how to run a country.  Since his exile, I have been ruling the country, but now they have violated their exile and come back to take over again.  I was unjustly incarcerated!"

          The Lord Judge listened carefully and took in every word.  He cleared his throat.

          "And you claim to have saved Altea even though it is drowning in poverty?"

          "Indeed.  At least the country isn't on the edge of bankruptcy.  What then?  And with a _weak ruler like the prince, Altea would be subject to invasion!"  Gaimen snarled, but forcing himself to retain some manners._

          "Gaimen, this is not a contest of insults.  Hold your tongue and just rely on _facts_, please."

          "The fact is he's taxing us into starvation to pay for his pretty clothes and roomfuls of partners!"  A peasant shouted from the crowd in the back.  Many other voices joined in, protesting violently until Lord Challen was forced to roar to make himself heard.

          "Silence!  I will have order in my courtroom or have you all removed from it!"  He commanded, glaring down at all of them.  The commoners settled back, grumbling amongst themselves.

          Challen turned back to Gaimen, looking faintly irritated.

          "Gaimen, you have been accused of high treason against the crown of Altea, conspiring against the crown, obstruction of justice, rape, child molestation, mass imprisonment of innocent people, slander, blackmail, assault…" 

          As Challen read off the long list of offences, Marth and Roy watched Gaimen's face turn first red, then vermillion and finally into a brilliant shade of purple.  The king knew how badly it sounded to all the public to hear all of those crimes read out loud.  

          "… cruel and unusual punishment, and false taxation by Prince Marth and General Roy.  How do you plead?"

          "Not guilty."  Gaimen growled.

          "What have you to say in your defense?"

          "The country will suffer if Marth is crowned king.  He has neither the power nor the will to be a good king.  He will let the country sink below the lowest mark, allow it to be invaded and overrun.  The majesty that is Altea will vanish with Marth's reign!"

          Challen's eyes glinted as he gazed calmly down at Gaimen.

          "The debate here, Gaimen, is not who would be a _good_ king, it is over who is the _rightful_ king."  The old man leaned back in his high-backed chair.  "High General Roy, your testimony please."

          "Yes, sir."  Roy stood quickly, glancing around him sharply.

          "I had won the title of general over this country from the former commander, Gaimen.  He already held a grudge against me from then.  Then one day I was yanked out of my routine, my rank stripped from me and exiled with the prince for no known reason…  I had been falsely accused.  But what you don't know is that Gaimen had arranged for us to be sold as slaves."

          The crowd made an appalled noise, their voices rising again.  Challen let them, his own bushy eyebrows raised in slight surprise.  The auburn-haired teen turned his back for all to see, unbuttoned his shirt and unraveled the bandages to show them his back.

          "The fresh ones are from recently, but the scars were given to me by the Manor-Lord Trave.  We escaped and made our way back to the city to reclaim what is rightfully ours."

          "That's impossible!  They're trying to set me up!  You don't have any record of them being at Trave's mansion!  Wounds are no proof of anything – he could have done that to himself to use it against me!"  Gaimen burst out, standing up.  

          "Hold your _tongue, Gaimen."  Challen reprimanded firmly.  _

          The head guard, Farro stood and introduced himself to the court and to the judge politely.

          "Lord Judge, I have one little lady who would like to testify against Gaimen.  She was at Trave's mansion when Price Marth and General Roy were."  He announced.  

          Gwen stepped out from behind him, visibly shaking from fear.  The peoples' eyes took her in, her servant's rags hanging off her thin body, short blond hair and wide green eyes.  People could fake testimonies, but there was no way that one could fake a damaged soul.  

          Challen saw this and nodded, giving Gwen permission to speak in his court.  She swore on the crown like the others had done and stood there, eyes darting all around nervously.  It wasn't because she was guilty of any crime – just afraid.

          "M-my name is Gwen…  I don't have a l-last name and I don't know h-how old I am.  I've lived as a slave in Master Trave's mansion my whole life and they saved me…  I owe everything to the Prince…" Gwen stuttered and stammered, her eyes growing moist with tears. "And I won't serve anyone but him…"

          Farro, the chief guard stepped forward and led Gwen back to her seat, for it seemed as if she would fall over at any second.  Marth felt his heart swell with pride and affection for the girl.  He made a mental note to reward Gwen in the near future.

          Roy glanced at Marth briefly and carefully pulled his shirt back on.

          "Gaimen cannot deny he has exploited the use of servants, prostitutes and concubines.  That is all I have to say – I'll leave the rest for the prince."            He said through his teeth and sat back down.

          "Thank you General.  That will be all."  Challen turned to Marth at last.  "Prince, please swear in and say what you will."

          Marth swore upon the crown, the crown that was rightfully his and turned to face the court.

          "I will not deny that when the ruling of this country fell into my hands, I was not as adept a ruler as you people deserve to have.  But I will not deny this either – this land has the potential to feed and clothe every one of its citizens and then some.  There is no reason for you to be impoverished thusly with poor food and little clothing and barely a roof over your heads.  Under a fair and steady guidance, we could return this country to its rightful bountiful state.

          "Everything that General Roy and Gwen said is indeed the truth.  My uncle arranged to sell us into slavery where we were sold to an old friend of his and used as pleasure slaves, forced to obey to his twisted whims.  Rage kindled in my heart at the injustice, as I'm sure it kindles now in yours, for you have been wronged just as I have.  My birthright and throne was stripped from me, but I am but one man.  You are the lifeblood of Altea.  You common people, you craftsmen, you farmers, you merchants you have suffered greatly, selling your possessions and even your family members to pay for bread.

          "My uncle is a clever man, but he is also the sort of man who would frame his own blood relative to gain power, a man who would molest and torture young boys and threaten to have them killed if they breathed so much as a whisper about it to anyone.  He accuses me of treason against my country, but what reason would I have to harm this land?  It runs in my veins and I love it, I am bound to it and I would die to protect it and its people.  Gaimen and his associates in this abomination were the only ones who stood to benefit if the general and I fell from grace."

          The blue-haired prince bowed deeply to his people and stood again, his arms spread wide.  

"So please, believe me to be your true king, if not for me, than for your own sakes."  He turned to Challen, inclining his head to the Lord Judge respectfully as well while the peasants whispered amongst themselves.  The prince had bowed down to _them_?  Never had this happened before…  

          "That is all that I desire to say, Lord Judge."  Marth spoke, resuming his seat.

          Challen nodded.

          "Thank you, Prince."  He turned to the court at large. "I will think over what has been said and return with my judgment."  He stood and walked out of the court to a smaller room off to the side, isolated so that he could consider the case without distraction.

          Roy sat quietly next to Marth, trying not to fidget.  He called upon his patience and found that he could properly restrain himself.

          "You were great," he told his prince quietly. "I didn't expect the girl to step up, though…  She may have just saved our lives."

          "I don't think she expected to either."  Marth replied in the same tone, looking over at Gwen.  He gave her an approving nod and a small smile that encouraged the damaged girl.  He turned back to Roy.  "And thank you.  You spoke well too.  Now let's just hope that we spoke well enough for Challen…"

          Some time later, the Lord Judge himself reentered the courtroom, looking grim.  Marth felt his heart sink.  Had all their endeavors been wasted?  Had everything they fought for and for so long been for nothing?  He fought to keep still as Challen spoke, his hand resting upon Falcion's hilt.

          "I have thought long and hard over what has been said here today and I have come to my conclusion.  Gaimen is guilty of all charges and shall be punished however Prince Marth sees fit.  Prince Marth and General Roy are innocent and free to return to their rightful ranks without persecution."  Challen announced.

          All the peasants let forth with an enormous cheer and the news quickly spread to the outside, where most of the congregation was waiting to hear the news.  Roy let out a sigh of relief, but that sigh alone could not express what he felt.  He glanced off to the side, through the windows at the gallows looming at them.  But that wasn't their fate now- It was Gaimen's.

          The boy-general stood abruptly and marched over to Gaimen himself, his blue eyes focused intently.

          "You lose."

          The jilted ex-monarch let out a roar of fury and hurled himself at the reinstated High General, wrapping his hands around Roy's throat, intent upon strangling him.  

          "If I die, I'll take you to hell with me, boy!"  Gaimen's eyes were filled with a frenzied light and he tightened his grip on Roy's neck. 

To Be Continued…

(In only one more chapter!) 

Xan:  Woooooooooooooow!  This is it!  Only one more chapter to go!  I loved writing this chapter…  So much great stuff happens!   Marth's testimony was fun to write – it's not often I get to have him talk for paragraphs like that.  And Gwen rocks!  I love Gwen!  Aaaaaaaaaaaand the best part was I got to put in another cliffhanger right at the end for you guys!  And you didn't think I could pull it off!  *ducks to avoid being hit by random objects thrown by reviewers*  Anyways, hope you liked it!  The end has come!

Vallen: *chants* Wooh! The end has come! The end has come! Don't mind us, we're just a little giddy. *smirk*

Another announcement: I don't like to start online battles or drama, but if you want to find out what happened recently/the latest news, go to the yahoo! Group. Also, if you haven't been to our new website, follow the link on our profile page.


	31. Noose

Fubuki no Kaen 

Authors: Xan and Vallen 

Rating: R

Warnings: One thing… Or, lot's of things: This is a story with yaoi/shounen ai/slash, whatever you want to call it. If that sort of stuff isn't your thing, then don't read it. But, we hope that you do…

Disclaimer: The characters Marth and Roy, plus "Altea", do not belong to us. We just use them for our pleasure.

Feedback: Yes. (That means we would love to hear from you and what you think!)

Notes:

Xan:  Wow… I just realized that this is it…  I'll never write thank you's for this fic ever again!  *cheers in background* *cough*  No seriously, I love doing it.  And I've loved writing this fic with my best friend Vallen and I've loved getting to know all of y'all.  There's no better friendship than those made through a connection of good art!  So thanks again to all of you for such a great experience…  I LOVE YOU GUYS!  Geesh it sounds like we're gonna die or something… But that's hardly the case!  Be sure to check out FNOK 2 when it comes out!

Vallen: Erm, what Xan said… This is the end of Fubuki no Kaen, but not the end of our torture for dear Marth and Roy. It will never end!

Important: If you like looking at fanart, you should visit the FnoK fanart section on the XanVallen website! (link is on our profile page). There's some really neat stuff if you haven't already seen it on the yahoo group. Also… there is still work to be done, but all the images are there. Have fun.

Thank You:  Shea (*eeevil grin* It's EASY to stop at cliffhangers!  And FUN!  Look at the reactions I get out of you guys!), LiL PriNCeSs Me (That was a very good cliffhanger, if I do say so myself…  I'm really proud of that one.  ^_^ And Gwen is awesome, we love you Gwen!  And you'll just have to follow FNOK2 of course!), Foame369 (*blinks* I'm sure your pets and smaller family members enjoy being hurled at Gaimen…  We're glad our story is good enough to be "mom-approved" ^_^ And another good thing that comes in twos:  Marth and Roy!  And thank you for reviewing each chappie, we feel honored), LilFilipinoGurl (Hey, don't be too sad!  There's still more Marth and Roy goodness by Xan and Vallen to come!  The testimonial thingie was fun for me to write and I'm glad y'all liked reading it…  And I'm sorry, no kiss in this chapter!  Just wait for the sequel, okay?!), Dark Comet (Yep, things are wrapping up nicely for our two boys…  They deserve a break, don't they?  *huggles them*  Poor babies, it's been so hard.  *coughs*  Um, thanks for the offer, but we don't need any extra charas… we have way more than we can handle running around ourselves.  *coughs*  Thirty main characters in one fic, not counting their evil twins.  [Sadly, we've done that -_-;;  we're maniacs]), Crockgirl13 (Don't worry, this may be the last chapter, but we're not stopping any time remotely soon!), Evui (Aw, you'll have a reason to come back!  To re-read it, duh!  And the sequel!  ^_^ We love you guys for reading it!  And PLEASE be patient on the yaoi!  There's a ton more yaoi in the sequel, so just hold on until then, okay?), heLLcheRRy (*bows* Thank you, we try.  *looks at fic, which is dead from love*  ^_^;;), Yami Hikari the Elf (Yes, Gwen DOES rock!  We should form a Gwen fan club, then maybe she'll be able to have some confidence… ^_^  *loves herself and Vallen for the cliffhangers*), YoshiMars (Yes yes, since there's a sequel, we all know that Roy's gonna live.  But it's fun to imagine what would have happened if I HADN'T told you guys about the sequel and it just appeared one day.  ^___^ I think you'd kill me though.  I'm beginning to think a little Gwen-shrine may actually be a really cool thing to have… and maybe one to Rowen too, since he kicks ass.  I kinda miss Rowen, actually.  And yes, this is the end.), Jennie (Yep, bastard seems to be the key word for the FNOK villains…  Trave was a rat-bastard and Gaimen is just a bastard.  Cliffhangers of DOOM!  I like that. Hope Otakon was fun!  We'll forgive you for not reviewing 'cause we know how awesome Cons are!  *Akon memories*  ^__^), pannybaby123 (Yes, poor Roy!  But don't feel too sorry for him, he's got a few tricks up his sleeve… *sly look*), Sinnatious (I always look forward to your reviews!  It kinda does make you wanna stand up and cheer along, doesn't it?  *smile*  And yes, that cliffhanger was aaaaaaaaall mine.  And I am very proud of it.  But luckily, we can't fit any more cliffhangers into this fic 'cause it's the end!  Or can we?  …BWAHAHAHAHA!  Vallen in particular is good at ending lines…  it's a gift.  ^_^), The Flame Panther (Oh wow, patience!  It will be rewarded, fear not!  Hope ya love this last chapter…), Pichu*Star (The end IS near!  Glad you liked the dialogue and stuff in this chapter and we're so happy to hear that Gwen has such a fan following!          Vallen and I love her and we're glad that y'all do too!  She needs the support... And glad to know that you think of us so highly!), Joh (WAH! A MARTH FAN!  We're a rare breed, ya know.), klar (Klar!  It's great to see from you again! *was afraid you'd abandoned us*  No not really!  We know you love us.  ^_^ Hope ya like the end...), Persian Kittie (Waugh!  Heh, I have absolutely no wish to redeem myself, thank you!  I like living in sin!  Glad you liked the cliffhanger. *smirk*), tikimoof (Congrats on being the500th review!  Gwen rocks, Roy's choking and Marth... well, marth is about to have his hands full, let's just say that.  And you'll just have to wait and see what happens to them.  ^_^), Asudem (Thank you! Maybe I should have Marth give speeches more often.  Hope ya like this!), MysticalWoodElf (^_^ Always leave 'em wanting more!  I think we do that QUITE well, don't y'all?), Domlando Blonaghan (Thanks for the high praise and we're glad you stopped by to look at FnoK! I'm kinda hesitant to report "abuse" to the powers that be, but we'll see), and Sake Girl Duelist (Heh… Thank you for that bit of drama… ^^ Made me laugh.)

Roy choked, his eyes widening at the taller man.  His hands flew to wrap themselves around Gaimen's, trying to pry them off of his throat.  The man's fingers were hot and sweaty, but that did not change the force of his grip. The teen cried out and his movements to free himself became more frantic. Suddenly, there was a spark at his fingertips and a roaring fire exploded in the region around Roy's throat.

          When the fire disappeared, Roy staggered back with a gasp.  He had not been hurt, but Gaimen…  The boy's bright blue eyes flickered towards the spectators with shock and horror.  That was when he heard Gaimen's yell of pain and revulsion, turning his eyes to see what the ex-king and all of the commoners were staring at.  All that remained of the man's fingers were bloody, charred stumps.

          '_You didn't cut off his hands…  I wanted you to…' Marth's words, spoken so long ago came back to Roy with startling clarity as he realized what he had done.  He stood there with his mouth hanging open in surprise, his muscles too paralyzed with shock to allow him to move._

          Marth stood staring at Roy and Gaimen, his expression morphing from one of astonishment to rage, and then grim satisfaction.  He strode over to stand beside Roy, his countenance radiating both tranquility and a lust for vengeance.  The prince could be a very frightening man.

          "That is enough, Pyromancer."  He spoke in a soft tone, yet his voice was somehow heard by all the multitudes of thunderstruck peasants.  They all quieted in their disbelief to stare at the three men. 

          "You have been punished, Gaimen.  But not enough.  By my decree, you will be hanged tomorrow morning and the gods have mercy on your soul, if you deserve such a thing.  I am the future King of Altea, this is what I have decided."  He turned to Farro. "Take Gaimen to his cell.  He is allowed no healer.  Roy, Gwen, come.  I have no further desire to be in the presence of this filth that was once my blood relative."

          As the captain of the guard obeyed his prince's order, Marth subtly slipped his hand around Roy's, squeezing it reassuringly.  He could tell that Roy was deeply repulsed by what he had done.

          The teen was unresponsive, but lowered his darkened eyes to the ground.  He could hear the crows murmur amongst themselves, whispering about him, terribly surprised at what they had just witnessed.  They wondered… had it been that ancient, forbidden power known as magic?  Roy ducked his head and pulled from Marth, backing away.

          Gwen walked up to Marth and stood at his side shyly, waiting obediently for his next command.

          Marth's eyes flashed dangerously and he rounded on the onlookers, his cape billowing from the abrupt movement.

          "Do you know what it is you see?  You see magic, the first magic in this city for almost fifty years.  Prince Marth and High General Roy have not only returned, but they have returned as the first new mages in many years!  We are the mages of fire and ice!"

          Snow began to fall in the court, landing lightly on the upturned faces of the amazed people.  Even Challen, the jaded old judge looked spellbound by the conjured precipitation.  They looked now at both the general and the prince, wary and hopeful.

          "Gwen, please escort Roy back to the castle.  Make him rest, even if you have to tell him that it's a direct order from me.  I will follow shortly."  Marth told the girl, his voice soft and low.

          The servant hurried over to Roy, tugging on the shaken boy's shirt lightly.  She carefully pulled him out of the court and led him through the castle gates and inside.  Following the prince's orders, she urged Roy to lie down on a couch in his new rooms in one of the castle wings, 'coincidentally' close to Marth's own chambers until the prince returned.

          Marth wanted to be with Roy and make sure that his partner was all right, but he owed at the very least a minimal explanation to the people as to what had just happened.  The blue-haired man related the story of the blizzard and the fire at the inn, omitting any mention of Rowen out of respect for his older friend's wish for solitude.  He promised to tell them everything that had happened to the two of them during their long exile when he was King.  (It was a lie of course.  '_I'm a politician already_,' Marth thought wryly. '_Not one day back in power and I'm already lying.'  But it wasn't a complete lie.  He _would_ tell them what had happened, just not all of it.)  They clamored for details now, but he declined, saying that he had executions to prepare.  They let him go, accepting that excuse.  The public loved executions._

          Once they had relinquished their prince, Marth hurried back through the dusk air to the castle and found Gwen and Roy right where he had hoped to – in Roy's chambers.  Gwen was sitting on the floor, watching over Roy.  She got up and waited in a corner room silently at Marth's arrival.  Disregarding the girl's presence, (He knew that he did not need to act the part of a royal in front of Gwen) he dropped his cold royal demeanor and kneeled down beside Roy's couch, worry apparent in his handsome, worn face.  

          "Roy…"

          "You were right…" The boy-general breathed, his eyes closed painfully. "I'm a menace…  I can't even control myself.  But it was self-defense, r-right?  The bastard got what he deserved and it's still coming to him…  Everything went silent and my magic attacked him…"  

          Marth touched Roy's silky auburn hair lightly, his clear blue eyes softening.  He could feel Roy's bewilderment, his self-disgust and perhaps even his fear as he ached to comfort him.

          "You are _not a menace, Roy.  You are a great mage and a great general, someone who I admire and love.  You gave Gaimen what he deserved.  No one blames you for what you did, least of all me.  Look at me, Roy."_

          He did not answer for a moment, his pale face tightly drawn.  Roy sat up slowly and opened his eyes, looking up at Marth at last.  He reached out for Marth and hugged the prince to him.

          "I want this to be over."

          Marth rubbed Roy's back, holding his general in his strong arms.  

          "It will be over soon and this will all be just a bad memory."  He told Roy softly. "And if it's any comfort, I would have stopped you before you had hurt anybody else in the courtroom."

          Roy sniffed and sat back, wiping his eyes quickly.  He straightened up and wrapped his arms around himself.

          "Thank you.  I just need some sleep, that's all."

          Marth stood, pulling Roy to his feet as he did so and led the general to the large bed.  He pulled back the blankets and made Roy get in, taking off his boots and outer clothing first.  

          "I'm commanding you as your sovereign to sleep.  We're waking up early tomorrow… as you know."  

          "Don't you dare pull rank on me too much, Highness…" Roy whispered, settling into his new bed comfortably.  It was much better than the cot he used to have.  "And thank you for the room."

          "Mm.  I think this is the only time you _let me pull rank on you."  Marth remarked, tucking Roy in snugly. "I'll wake you in the morning."_

          He drew the curtains and blew out the candles before exiting the room, beckoning to Gwen, who had been waiting faithfully outside the door to follow him as he walked back towards the direction of his own chambers.  He desperately sought rest after such a long and harrowing day.  

          "If I may speak…" Gwen started softly, walking a little behind Marth as was customary for servants. "You are very kind, your Highness.  Am I dismissed for the evening?  Shouldn't you eat something?"  She clamped her mouth shut tightly after that last statement, eyes glued on the floor respectfully. "Forgive me… it is n-not my place…"

          Marth smiled, amused despite his weariness.  

          "I can already tell that you are going to be my boss whether it's your 'place' or not.  Very well then, m'Lady, I'll eat something for you.  And you are allowed to say anything you want around me unless I specifically order otherwise."  

          "Oh…  Thank you so much," Gwen answered gratefully, bowing again.  She went with Marth to the kitchen and stood to the side, waiting for the prince to get food for himself.  The servant girl looked weary from the day's activities and swayed on her feet.  Most of the kitchen staff, save the night cook and a few maids were asleep, but Marth declined their assistance, saying that if he couldn't make a meal for himself, how could he be expected to run a country?  

          Marth finished eating quickly, consuming only enough food to keep the girl off his back.  In truth, he had scarcely eaten a thing in the past few days, but he just didn't have the stomach for it right now.  A bit of meat, some bread and some wine were all that he needed.  When he had finished, he put his arm about Gwen's shoulders and led her to the servant's quarters.

          "I know that you are afraid of being touched, Gwen, but you are about to fall over, so please forgive me."  He spoke softly, keeping his hands on her shoulders so that his touch would not cause her discomfort.  

          Gwen shivered as she felt his hands on her body, but nodded.  She would be brave for her king.  When they arrived at the servant's living area, she thanked him profusely and walked unsteadily over to a corner of the room where some blankets were stacked and curled up.  The blankets were neatly folded, but were thin and ratty, little more than rags.

          "They say I'm too small for a real bed," the girl whispered, glancing around at the occupied bunks where other servant girls were already asleep. "I shall attend to you in the morning, Highness?"

          Marth's frigid gaze rested on the pile of blankets that his faithful servant was forced to sleep upon.  

          "Which one says that to you?"  

          Gwen pointed to one of the sleeping women, a servant older than herself.  In a businesslike manner, Marth walked over to the bunk, picked up the woman and deposited her none too gently on the pile of blankets on the floor as Gwen scrambled out of the way.  The abrupt movement awakened the woman and her eyes shot open.

          "What are you doing?  Who are you?!"  She demanded, struggling to get on her feet. "Unhand me or I'll scream!"  

          "Silence.  You'll do no such thing."  Marth said firmly, stepping away from the woman. "I am Prince Marth and it is my desire that my personal servant should sleep in your bed tonight.  You will neither protest or resist or I shall have you severely punished.  Do you understand?"

          The woman nodded, staring at Marth wide-eyed.  Indeed, the prince was an impressive sight – he hadn't had a chance to change out of his formal clothing and Falcion was still sheathed at his side.  He turned back to Gwen and helped her slip into the bed.

          "There.  Now get some decent rest and come to me in the morning.  I may try to arrange you some quarters closer to mine in the meantime."

          "Yes, sir…" Gwen whispered, quite comfortable in the borrowed bed.  She watched until he was gone, then closed her eyes.  All the other women whispered amongst themselves quietly, but Gwen tried to ignore their gossip.  Tomorrow…

          Marth walked slowly back to his own chambers, his shoulders stooped and pace slow like that of a weary old man.  The halls were empty, save for shadows, a few stone-faced guards and one pageboy who had bowed briefly to Marth before running away, terrified.  Marth watched his retreating back with a sigh.  The boy had probably grown to fear monarchs during Gaimen's reign.  He wondered briefly if that had been one of his uncle's wretched victims.  

          The prince stopped at a window and stared out at the gallows silhouetted against the starry background of the clear night sky.  The noose swung slowly back and forth from the heavy wooden crossbar, like a sinister pendulum in the clock of life.  Marth turned his gaze away from it with a shudder.

          '_I don't regret sentencing them to hang.  The gods know that they all deserve it, especially that king bastard, but I hate him for making me do it.  I hate him for everything he's done to me, Roy and every other innocent person in this kingdom.  Or out of it.  And he's going to pay.'_

          He knew that his sentiments heavily contradicted one another, his longing for Gaimen's death and his reluctance to pull the lever clashing violently in his mind.  

          Wait, _why was he reluctant?  Marth shook his head in an attempt to clear it.  In all the excitement, his mind had become muddled.  Gaimen had no reason to live; Marth had no reason to _let_ him live.  The man had no redeeming qualities and what he had done warranted his death several times over.  He deserved to hang._

          Satisfied, Marth began to walk back to his rooms.  He peeked into Roy's room, checking on his general, who was blissfully asleep.  Content in that knowledge, Marth crawled into his own bed and fell asleep as well, wishing that he were with Roy instead of alone in this big bed.

          Roy was choking.  It was hard to breathe with Gaimen's hands wrapped so tightly around his throat.  But he opened his eyes and quickly saw that there was no real threat.  He had simply been moving quite a bit in his sleep and had gotten tangled in the covers.

          The boy-general thought it had been strange to wake up in such a nice bed, but he remembered that it was his now, along with the room around him.  A glance at one window told him that it was just barely sunrise, the time he was accustomed to waking up.  He sat up and rubbed his eyes, noticing that his back was sore, but it was the only thing that ailed him.  Slipping into a clean, white linen shirt, he took a comb and ran it through his hair, adjusting his headband.

          '_If black is the color of mourning… then I shall wear the opposite…' Roy thought bitterly, poking his head out the door.  Several servants scurried down the hall and even further down, he saw Gwen seated on the floor outside of Marth's door._

          The teen walked down towards her, a curious look on his face.

          "You can go in there if you knock, you know…"

          Gwen looked up at him, then downward, as was a servant's custom.

          "Oh, but I couldn't disturb…"

          "Fine, but he's probably awake anyways," Roy replied, knocking loudly on the prince's door.  The girl stood hurriedly.

          True to Roy's prediction, Marth was already awake and opened the door.  But unlike the general, he was dressed in elegant, somber black.

          "We're needed at the gallows."  He spoke quietly.

          "I know."  Roy jerked a thumb towards the girl standing behind him. "You going to bring her?"

          "I c-can close my eyes…" Gwen offered, trying to get a hold on her frightened stutter.  

          "I don't _need you to accompany me and I do not wish to make you watch something that you don't want to see.  Do as you wish, Gwen."  He beckoned to Roy and began to walk down the hall._

          "I… will be here…" Gwen whispered, sitting down on the floor again to wait.

          Roy walked until he was walking side-by-side with the prince and glanced over at him.

          "I'm feeling better now…" He started quietly as they walked down a flight of stairs.  "I guess letting out all that energy was… good for me.  And the sleep too – I don't think I've ever slept that well in my life.  Is that really my room now?"

          "Mage energy is like any other force, it needs to be used and kept in check.  Especially yours.  And yes, that room is yours."  Marth answered in the same tone.

          "I wish that old hermit were here sometimes.  I would feel a whole lot safer, but I trust you."  Roy stopped, touching Marth's shoulder.  "It's strange to think that I would never have said anything like that a year ago."

          Marth managed to give him a tiny smile.

          "It's nice to know some one does.  I was thinking last night that I should invite him here."  He paused and placed his hand over Roy's.  "It is strange.  But I'm glad that you can say it now."

          They arrived just then at the gallows, a line of condemned men waiting for them.  

          Roy walked past Marth to the royal guards, taking a deep breath of the fresh, cool morning air.

          "You have been charged and proven guilty under the Lord Judge Challen," he stated. "Commence with the execution."

          Gaimen was in restraints, his mauled hands tied behind his back, but he kept throwing glares at Marth and Roy.  He was at the end of the line of the men to be hanged.

          Marth watched as one by one, the executioners pulled the lever and sent the traitorous men to their deaths.  His face was as hard as the ice he controlled as Gaimen was brought up to the stand.  The uncle and nephew stared at one another for a full minute, not speaking nor moving.  Then Gaimen spat into Marth's face, but the prince did not retaliate and merely wiped it off.  Gaimen felt burning cold stab into his side.  His lungs burned with ice and blood seeped into his ragged clothing as the noose was placed around his neck.  Gaimen tried to look at Marth, but the ferocity in the prince's eyes forced him to avert his gaze.

          The boy-general stared at the man who had been the root source of all his pain and problems for the last year, no even longer than that.  The past year flashed before his eyes and he was filled with an intense, fiery anger.

          "Hang him."

          Everything was silent except for the sound of Gaimen's body dropping through the air and halting abruptly with a sharp jerk.  The false king's neck broke in the fall and he hung there, swinging gently.  His eyes were still open, the fierce look dying in them as the life left his body.  

          Roy bit his own bottom lip, so hard that a trickle of blood ran down his chin.  His eyes were focused utterly on the rope.  Without warning, it burst into flames, the noose forming a fiery collar around Gaimen's neck.

          The noise of the crowd started up again, but the young men paid no attention.  Their identical hard blue eyes watched their fallen enemy swing slowly back and forth.

-The End-

Xan:  Wow guys…  It's over.  I really hope you liked this ending…  It's kind of a cliffhanger, isn't it?  ^_^ I still got it!  I know this is over, but don't be too sad, we're not done with Marth and Roy yet!  *evil laughter*  If you think we can just end it HERE, you're nuts!  The sequel will be coming out soon, so keep an eye out, okay?  Stay cool, guys.  *v-sign*  

Vallen: A-hem… Now it's _my_ turn to be special… I actually wrote the ending, and then Xan read it and said, "It's done." I was like, "WHAT?!" But sure enough, it was. She loves to have endings sneak up on me. But… *turns to Xan* I have a feeling that they're either going to like this chapter, or really hate it. ^^;;;; Don't hate us, please.

Also in your reviews (if you choose to review), since this is the end, we would very much appreciate your honesty in telling us if you liked FnoK, what you liked about it, what were your favorite parts, etc. Or if you didn't like it and there was something that you were unhappy with, what was it? Just a few suggestions that would help your feedback to help us when we edit FnoK in the future!


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